


Confessions of a Sociopath

by KittyGoddess415



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: F/M, Skyeward - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-28
Updated: 2015-07-12
Packaged: 2018-03-26 05:59:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 35,092
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3839713
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KittyGoddess415/pseuds/KittyGoddess415
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>AU from 2x14 "Love in the Time of Hydra". In an attempt to appease my Skyeward heart, I'm transcribing the episodes and weaving my narrative around them, with a Skyeward twist in every look and every pause.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I wish I owned a single bit of this 'verse, but instead I am just grateful to Chloe and Brett for giving me so much to work with. :)

**Prologue**

_I know that I'm a sociopath. I also know not many people would believe that, would think I'm just playing them again. I know it, I accept it. I have to accept it - myself, even - when no one else can. I see the world, feel things, I just can't make the two match. The closest I've ever gotten to that peace, that synchronicity is when I look at her._

_I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that she's not human. For someone as fractured and tainted as I am, it would take someone not human to make me fall._

_Why can't anyone understand that? I'm a specialist. My brain isn't wired like theirs. I'm trained differently, bred differently, even. I know my family looked like the Rockefellers, but behind closed doors, they were just as sick and twisted as they made me. Maybe I can't express it, I can't explain myself, but it's because it was long ago beaten out of me. I didn't think the damn cube would sink, and I'm willing to bet Fitz could have found another way out of there, if he hadn't been so wrapped up in saving Simmons. But who would believe me now?_

_"Skye."_

_Seeing her there, knowing that it may very well be the last time I ever see her…So many things I could say, things I want to explain to her, but…_

_That time has passed. If Simmons had her way, I'd be dead at the bottom of the ocean. The little boy standing beside a well that still lived inside of me thought it'd be appropriate._

_Who knew it would take four bullets to wake me up?_

_And when will I stop wondering why one of them wasn't a shot to the head?_

* * *

**Chapter 1**

Ward grabbed Agent 33's hand up into the chopper, wincing.  _Take it as the compliment it is, damn it, she could've aimed for your thick skull,_ a voice that sounded suspiciously like Christian's hissed to him.  _Well no shit, but that only made everything more confusing._

Agent 33 turned to him. "Where are we going?"

Ward took an unsteady breath and gave her coordinates. "I have my own safehouse there, if you can handle field medic."

She nodded.

"Good," he managed. "Then get us there, and while you're at it, want to tell me your real name?"

"Agent 33," she bit out. She turned her attention back to the controls as Grant's vision started to fade to black.

* * *

Skye bolted upright in her bed.  _What - where am I._ She looked around and frowned at the glass. "Guys? Hello? Since when did my bunk go peep show?"

"Skye!" Simmons smiled from the other side of the barrier. "We have to follow protocol but...oh, I'm so glad you're awake." She put her hand to the glass. "Let me get a suit and I'll be in there to hug you."

_Protocol. Right._ Skye blew out a breath. "Quarantine protocol. The 084. The Obelisk." She froze. "Raina. Where - what happened to -  _no."_ It swept through her in a rush and she shook her head. "No. No, that - Trip - Simmons, just...just please tell me...tell me no…" She kept whispering "no, no, no," shudders wracking her. "Please…"

Simmons swallowed. "Let me get that suit, Skye." She pressed her hand harder to the glass before turning away.

"No…" Skye sank to the floor, shuddering harder. "Please…"

* * *

**_A month later_ **

"You like fried chicken? Ours is the best in the county." Rhonda smiled at the couple in front of her. Poor girl, she looked like she got burned in a fire or something, half of her face shrouded by her hair. What a good man to stick by her side, when he could obviously have any woman he wanted.

"Oh, I - I'm not sure," Agent 33 stammered. "I - I guess I need another minute."

"Of course," Rhonda assured her. "And what about you, handsome?"

"Think I'll try the pumpkin pancakes," Grant Ward replied with a grin.

"Ooh, good choice," Rhonda complimented. "How about I grab you some pecan syrup while your friend makes up her mind?"

"Hmm. Pumpkin pancakes for dinner?" Agent 33 questioned.

"Did you not hear what she said about the pecan syrup?" Ward teased.

"Well, you are just full of surprises," 33 replied.

"Hey, I tried being the meat-and-potatoes guy," he explained.

"Well, I didn't know that guy...but the guy sitting across from me isn't so bad."

"Says the girl who saved my ass back in Puerto Rico, nursed me back to health…"

"Well, what else was I going to do?" 33 shook her head. "After Whitehall was killed I was just...lost."

"Then I guess we're both lucky you found me."  _And I'm sorry that I'm using you._ Ward kept the smile on his face.  _I'm not going to be like Garrett, though, I'm going to fix you. To use you like I need to, I have to fix you and fix me and then maybe…_ "Looks like we're a go." Ward allowed a bit of his actual frustration to show. "I was really looking forward to those pancakes."

* * *

Skye struggled to hide a sigh. "It's okay, Fitz," she said quietly. "You don't have to put a positive spin on this."

"I'm not doing that. I would never patronize the -" Fitz shook his head as Skye and Simmons both looked at him. "Well the - things change. That's what I'm saying. So maybe if you can learn to control this, then...you could have Avengers-level powers," he continued hopefully. "Something like Captain America, even."

"I think it best we keep in mind the unstable nature of Skye's powers," Simmons said, smiling tightly. "If there  _is_ an Avenger equivalent, right now I'm afraid it's the Hulk," Simmons clarified flatly.

Skye struggled to keep herself calm as Fitz and Simmons sniped at each other.  _Like it isn't bad enough that I have powers I can't control, they're fighting about me, in front of me, acting like it's not me they're talking about..._ She fought back a cry of frustration as everything started to shake again.

"I'm sorry, Skye," Fitz fumbled out.

"This really isn't about you," Simmons offered.

"I'm pretty sure it is," Skye murmured darkly. "I'll go back to the cage." She stood and stalked away, leaving Fitz and Simmons staring after her.

_The cage._ My  _cage, now. Not Ward, not my father, but_ me.  _I'm the one trapped, the one everyone is looking at..._ She bit her lip hard, clenching her fists and blowing out harsh breaths as she felt the fine bones of her forearms shift and break again.

* * *

Even with all his training, Ward shifted anxiously as the doctor worked on 33's nanomask.  _This has to work. It has to. Everything depends on it._ He blew out a breath as the tools moved closer to her face, the circuits and mesh reknitting.

The doctor ran Agent 33 through a series of diagnostics while Ward calculated the rest of the operation.

"Well then I guess it's fair to say that we all hide our true selves, don't we?"

"Or we just...wait for the right time to reveal the truth."  _If you only both of you understood how true that is..._ Ward met the doctor's gaze steadily as the subtext registered. Agent 33 stood behind Ward as the specialist took over.

* * *

_It was always a shame that other people couldn't be trusted. But if Garrett taught me anything, it's that anyone would talk about anything, given the proper pressure._

_I know all about that. And this operation is too precious to jeopardize._

_Would anyone understand the fine line I have to walk to be enough of a bad guy to fix things, but enough of a good guy to maybe have a chance? Give me a chance to reveal my truth, Skye. You didn't kill me, and that has to be for a reason._

* * *

"I'm sorry about everything that's happening, Skye." Coulson's face was remorseful as he gazed at her.

Skye shot him a sour look. "Not your fault. The blame begins and ends with my dad."  _All other scores are settled, now..._ She stared hard across the plane.

"Well, you wouldn't be the first person to have parents with misguided intentions," Coulson returned.

She fought back the snicker. "Nope, just the first whose crazy dad lured her to an alien city to get earthquake powers."  _That makes anything anyone else has done seem...reasonable._

They exchanged a look.

"Yeah." Coulson gave a short laugh that made it clear to Skye how worried he actually was. "I got us a little something for the trip," he offered, reaching into his bag to pull out some licorice.

Skye bit into it, grateful to have something else to do besides think about her fate. As Coulson told his story, she tried to get her bearings, tried to sense where they were going. When he stopped, she took the opportunity to steer the conversation. "Just to be clear, I - I'm the Corvette in this story, right?" Coulson's smile was her answer as she continued. "Now you want to tell me where we're going?"  _Is the cage too close, or is this more permanent than a cage?_

"We're almost there," was Coulson's only answer.

_Not reassuring._

* * *

Ward smiled as he tossed his quarry onto the bed, opening the envelope to confirm their contents.  _Closer and closer to what I need, to where I need to be._

"Have a seat. I'll be right in," 33 called from the bathroom.

He sniffed the air and smiled wider. "What have you done?" he murmured. He smoothed down his tie and sat at the table.  _Initiative. A sign of recovery._

"When you left, it got me thinking..." Her voice drifted closer.

_Confidence. Next order of business._ He turned to let her make whatever move she had in mind.

"What do I have to offer that you would even want?" she questioned.

Ward closed his eyes as she started to massage his shoulders.  _A show of trust._ He even gave a low hum of pleasure to encourage her.  _She's like a kicked puppy sometimes..._ As she slid to sit in his lap, he smiled.  _Not so much anymore, it seems._

"Surprise," she whispered.

Ward opened his eyes.  _Skye._ His heart pounded as she leaned in to kiss him.  _Skye..._ He closed his eyes and kissed her back, his hands roaming a body that -  _Not right, not right at all, you know it, damn it, just -_  He pushed her away more gently than his gut wanted him to.  _Can't shove her away like that, can't lose her now._ "Wait. Wait. What are you doing?"

"I'm giving you what you want," she said breathlessly, her hands still trying to pull him closer.

_Skye..._ He shuddered as that voice, those words, sent electricity through his body.  _Not Skye. Not_ really _Skye._ She leaned in to kiss him again and he ducked away. "You're wrong," he countered.  _You couldn't begin to guess how wrong._

"We both know that's not true," 33 challenged.

_Yes, we do._  Grant looked down before he gave himself away.

"You took Skye off that S.H.I.E.L.D. plane for a reason," she continued.

_Of course I did._ He looked into Skye's face and fought not to take what 33 offered. "I made her a  _promise,_ " he corrected.

"You don't have to pretend," she persisted. She stroked his face with soft fingertips.

He focused on his breathing and ducked his head.

"I saw the way you looked at her." She moved to try to catch his eye.

"And you also picked me up off the floor after she shot me." Ward pushed her off and walked away.  _I can't have her that warm and that close with that voice and that face…_ He channeled his frustration into a facsimile of anger. "Whatever I may have thought there was between me and Skye, she made it pretty clear the feeling wasn't mutual."  _Except she didn't take a kill shot when I know she absolutely could..._ He blew out a breath as he looked at her and away again. "I'm not insane."  _I'm_ not.  _She let me live..._ He let his gaze wander the room, exasperation rolling from him in waves.  _And that's why I can't let you try that trick again._

"Uh, I'm...sorry," 33 said quietly, wrapping her robe tighter and higher around her. "Please, you have to forgive me." She stalked past him. "This is so stupid."

Ward reached for her as she fussed in the mirror. "It's okay," he reassured her.  _Balance of power achieved._

33 sighed. "I - I ju - I thought that if...I looked like her, then maybe…" She touched her face softly. "Maybe there's a chance we could be together."

Ward shook his head. "Well, maybe we could." He touched her hair lightly. "But not as Skye or May."  _Wrong kind of confidence and initiative. We'll fix that._ He wrapped his hands around her upper arms and shook his head again. "No, it has to be with  _you."_

The tears in her eyes told Ward he'd said just the right thing. "Me?"

He nodded, letting his face soften to a smile. "Yeah."

"There  _is_  no me," she protested.

_How can you say that?_ He looked at her incredulously. _If you only knew what it was to have your soul crushed by someone who was supposed to love you...how much worse it could be..._

"Whoever I was before is just gone!" she ranted, smashing a vase against the wall. "Whitehall wiped her all away."

Ward struggled for words.  _This is not what I wanted, not how I wanted this to go..._ He sighed in frustration as she walked away.  _What better way to make her open up than to share..._ He followed her across the room, sitting on the edge of the bed as she tried to find her equilibrium again. "I know what you're going through."  _Though you'll never_   _understand what I've survived_..."My family did a number on me. Stripped me down, left me... _hollow_. I was a shell." He held her gaze for a beat. Ward could tell he'd shocked her by his confession, the tears shining in her eyes but not falling. "So when someone finally  _did_  come along and offered to build me back up, I didn't resist." He shook his head as he remembered, tapping into the confusion and hurt that seemed so far away. "Even though what he  _really_  did was make me a killer."

"But you seem so well-adjusted," 33 said uncertainly.

It took him a moment to school his features back into the good-natured mentor. "It was a long road."  _If you only knew_..."Took getting locked up to give me some perspective."  _No more blindly following someone or something,_ I'm _in control now..._ "But then I paid my family a visit."  _I think you could call it that..._ "They were..." He exhaled as he searched for the right word. "...surprised to see me, but I think eventually, we were able to...dig in, really...express our feelings."

"That's it?" 33 looked hopeful for the first time since the mask had been repaired.

_That and a whole lot of explosives. It definitely demonstrated how_ I  _felt._ He made sure his smile was easy, genuine as he could make it. "I haven't looked back since."  _Even if I did, I would only have seen the smoldering ruins of the Ward family, finally showing the rot at the core._  He stood and sat next to 33 on the bed, taking her hand. "You are the only one that can find yourself."  _I'll just help you steer._ "But maybe..." He reached behind him for the manila envelope he'd returned with. "...this will help." He handed it to 33.

"What is it?" she asked uncertainly.

"Closure," he replied.  _For you, and the beginnings of it for me_...

She opened it, her gaze darting to his and away as she reached in. "Sunil Bakshi."

"He's in Air Force custody under a guy named Talbot."  _Two of my favorite people in one place..._ "I was thinking you and I should stop by and say hello."

Anger slowly threaded through her voice as she remembered. "Bakshi was the one who dragged me from my safe house, prepped me for Whitehall -"

"Which is why you need a face to face," Ward insisted. "To get all this out. Let  _him_  know -" Grant pointed to the picture again, stoking her rage. "- how you really feel."

"I - I - I'm sorry, I just, I can't -" 33 set the picture aside, panic rolling from her in waves.

_Too hard too soon_. He wondered if his own psyche was ever that fragile. "Hey. It's okay," Ward assured her. "We'll do this together."  _But we_ will _do it, damn it_. "I'll be there every step of the way."

She looked at him and down at the bed, fear still lingering around her. "Okay," she agreed quietly.

"Okay," he repeated with a smile. If there was a hint of triumph to it, it was only because he knew with certainty what was to follow.

"But how?" she asked. "You said he's in Air Force custody."

"Got that all worked out." He stood and rounded the bed to the garment bag he'd brought back along with the Bakshi intel. "First," he reached in to pull out the small box inside. "You're gonna need this." He flipped open the ring box to reveal the fake wedding band within. He saw the look on her face and smiled.  _This is going to be fun._

* * *

Skye looked around as Coulson opened the door to let them into the cabin in the woods.  _Because this isn't the beginning of a creepy horror science fiction movie at all._

Coulson dropped their bags and started to speak again. "It's one of Fury's old retreats. Haven't been in here in years."

Skye scoffed. "Fury's not the kind of guy who has a cabin just to relax. What  _is_  this place?"

"It's a safe house for people with powers," Coulson explained. "Rogers even spent a few weeks here after he defrosted."

_A safe house, huh?_  She raised a brow. "Okay, but who's it supposed to keep safe, the people with powers...or everyone else?"

Coulson, to his credit, answered bluntly. "Both." He sighed. "Skye, I'm afraid I have to pull you from active duty."

_And there it is._  Skye nodded before responding. "I get it. I do. I just didn't think that you'd lock me up like a werewolf during full moon."

Coulson shook his head. "You're not alone here."

Skye glanced around.  _Really?_  "Feels pretty isolated to me."

"There's a direct video link to the base, and May will keep dropping by every couple of days," he insisted.

Skye rolled her eyes.  _Solitary confinement with TV and visiting hours._  "What am I supposed to do? Go fishing?"

"Well, if you  _do_  go outside, be careful. There's a laser fence around the perimeter," he explained.

Skye could only stare.

"Look, this is a safe place. You can relax here," Coulson urged. "You can use this time to get a handle on your abilities."

"Yeah, 'cause  _that's_  worked great so far," she retorted.  _I thought I_ was _getting a handle on them. Instead they were getting a handle on me..._

"Well, maybe it's time we give you a hand with that." Coulson walked back to the table, opening the case he'd brought in. "Simmons has been working around the clock on these. She assures me they'll cut your recovery time in half."

Skye picked one up, running her hands over the material. "How do they work?"

"The internal wiring emits a surge of electricity to inhibit your powers," he explained.

_Inhibit my_  - "So these take my powers away?" Skye looked at him, a mix of hope and skepticism in her eyes.  _If I put these on, can I just get back on the jet and go home?_

Coulson clarified, "More like decrease their magnitude to keep you from hurting yourself." He continued matter of factly. "Like I said, we want you to heal."

"Seems like a no-brainer," Skye offered.  _Wear the gloves, stop hurting, pretend none of this ever happened..._

"It's a personal call," he replied.

_A personal call..._ Skye's optimism started to fade. "What do you mean? Are there side effects?"

"A few," he admitted. "Simmons can go over them with you later."

_It's tech for people with powers...of course there are side effects._ She looked at him. "Are these gloves really my best option?"

Coulson only gave another pursed lipped look. "I can't answer that question for you, Skye."

" _Stop_ ," she burst out. " _Stop_  being this S.H.I.E.L.D. guy for just one second, okay?  _Please_." The panic started to surge, everything starting to vibrate within her. "We've been through way too much together. I just need you to be my friend right now. What would you do if you were me?"

"I don't know," he confessed. "These are uncharted waters, but if anybody can find a way through them, it's you," Coulson assured her.

Tears sprang to her eyes, her chest tight.  _I'm going to be here, alone, and I don't know if those gloves will help or hurt and I'm just supposed to figure it all out?_  "'Cause I'm the red Corvette."  _At my core, I'm still human. That's the lesson, right?_

Coulson met her gaze steadily, with certainty in his voice as he replied. "Because you're one of the few people I know I can trust."

* * *

Ward monitored comms over the guard's shoulder while "Mrs. Talbot" made her way through the compound, breathing deeply as all went to plan.  _Talbot will call Coulson, and while he may not know it's me, he'll know..._

* * *

"Thanks for the update, Mack." Coulson ended the call with a grim look.

Skye frowned. "Is everything okay?"

Coulson took a breath. "I'm afraid I have to get back."

Skye buried the disappointment.  _Years in the foster care system are good for something, right?_  "I get it. Didn't expect you to stay and roast marshmallows."  _Even though that would at least make me feel human..._

"This is temporary, Skye," Coulson reminded her. "I'll be back in a couple days. If you need anything ..."

_If I need anything, I'll have to wait for someone to come back and care..._ Skye held her tongue. "I'll let you know."

Sighing, Coulson pulled her in for a hug. "We'll figure this out. I promise."

Skye nodded, holding on to the last physical presence she had until he pulled away. ' _We' or me?_

* * *

Ward rolled the fallen soldier under the security desk, pulling his knife as a male soldier approached.  _You couldn't have just believed I was here to help...if you had just gone down the hall, I wouldn't have had to kill you..._ When the door simply closed, he smirked. "Uniform's a little big."

33 gave him a smug look. "Shortest guy I could find. Any luck with security clearance?"

Ward held up the key card he'd lifted from the body at his feet.

33 smiled. "Come on. Follow me."

Sunil Bakshi looked up at the sound of the keys. "What is it you want?"

Ward watched as 33 let her face morph to May's again.

Bakshi's face lit up. "Agent 33," he murmured, standing. "Loyal to the very end."

_Oh, loyal she is, Bakshi._ Ward stepped into view.  _But thanks to your ineptitude that loyalty doesn't belong to_ you _anymore..._

Bakshi's gaze shot to Ward. "What are you doing here?"

Ward shrugged, wheeling in the wheelchair. "Just lending a hand."

Bakshi's attention shot back to 33. "Whose orders are you following?"

She smiled with relish. "My  _own_."

Bakshi's expression was urgent, with a hint of panic as he spoke. "Agent 33, you need to listen to me very carefully. You've lost your way. Take a deep breath. Calm your mind... and your compliance will be -"

Agent 33 clocked him, waiting until he fell to nod to Ward.

He wheeled closer with a smile.  _Gotcha. Both of you._

* * *

"Agent 33 infiltrated your base to break out Sunil Bakshi?" Coulson and May stood side by side as Talbot spoke from the screen.

"Turns out she wasn't working alone, either," the general continued. "We managed to track down video of the vehicle leaving the premises." He locked eyes with Coulson. "Guess who was behind the wheel."

Coulson waved a hand.

"Grant Ward," Talbot supplied.

"Agent 33 must have dragged him out of Puerto Rico," May murmured.

"Guessing we haven't heard the last of this," Coulson replied.

* * *

Grant Ward stepped back and considered his -  _their -_ handiwork in the middle of the room.  _Just a couple of hiccups, but otherwise exactly according to plan._ He rubbed a hand over his ribcage.

33 stared at the mirror and touched the side of the mask, faces scrolling away until her own, burned as it was, remained. She took a shaking breath.

_That's my cue._  Ward crossed the room to stand behind her in the mirror.

"Nice to finally meet you," he murmured. He waited until she turned around, holding out a hand. "I'm Grant."

"Kara," she replied softly, shaking his hand.

He smiled. "I'm proud of you, Kara."  _You have been exactly what I hoped for._

She threw her arms around him. "Thank you so much," she managed, tears lacing her voice.

Grant squeezed her arms as she released him. " _You_  did this," he insisted. "And it is just the beginning."

She nodded, her eyes bright. "Guess that's true. It's going to be a long night. "

"Guess we should get started, then." They both turned back to their captive. Grant started to roll up his sleeves. "You really think this'll work?"

"We'll see," Kara answered, ripping the tape from Bakshi's mouth.

Bakshi groaned. "If I obey, will my compliance be rewarded?" he pleaded.

Kara leaned closer, a dark satisfaction in her gaze. "To be honest, it really won't make a difference."

Grant sat back, watching her.  _But it will make a difference to_ you _, Kara...Maybe one of us can have a chance at not being a monster after all of this._ He kept the smile on his face as Raina's voice hissed at him, of he and Skye being monsters together.  _What happened to you, Skye? What did you become?_

Kara smiled and nodded at Ward. "Let's begin."

* * *

_His programming was easier than either Kara or I anticipated. I suppose someone so arrogant would never have the core of strength that she or I had, that core that came of bitter hardship and sheer force of will. He folded, and he molded, and we're ready for the next phase._

_Imagine my surprise when Coulson showed up. It was almost more than I could've hoped for._

_Almost._

_How the hell did he manage to lose Skye?_

* * *

A.N.: And now, I wait for the next ep. If anyone enjoyed this, please let me know! And either way, thanks for reading.


	2. The Frenemy of My Enemy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And now, they meet again.

_The enemy of the enemy is my friend, or so the saying goes. I knew, just by virtue of our goals, that we would cross paths again - Coulson and the team. I had no idea how, though. I knew at some point we'd be pursuing the same target, but...I definitely didn't think we'd see them as soon as we did._

* * *

_A cactus. She'll get it. Beautiful, prickly._ Grant Ward put the plant on the passenger seat.  _Remind you of anyone else?_ Christian's voice murmured. Grant took a breath as his phone started to vibrate, seeing the familiar number. "Hey baby," he greeted, grinning.

"Hey, sweetie. Why don't you drop by? Love to catch up," Coulson replied.

_Well, shit._  Ward's smile fell away.  _Showtime._  He confirmed where they were and hung up, blowing out a breath.  _So much for that low key day of Mexican and margaritas_. He put the car in gear to meet them.

* * *

Mike scanned Kara's face, identifying the tech fused to it. "That mask on your face...got any more of those lying around?"

"Afraid not," she answered with a tight smile.

"At least I have my winning personality," Mike countered.

Both of them stood as the door flew open and Grant strode in. Kara started towards him, subsiding as Mike shoved her into her seat.

_Deathlok as bodyguard? What is going on?_  "They didn't hurt you, did they?" Ward asked.  _This isn't a typical Coulson scenario._

"No, I'm okay. You shouldn't have come," Kara protested.

"Fact that this guy hasn't killed me yet means they need me," Ward remarked.  _But for what?_ He looked at the other occupant of the table. "Mike."

"Ward," Mike greeted. "Turn around."

Ward made a show of it, feigning reluctance.  _In another universe, this would be my job._

"You know what needs to happen?" Mike's voice signaled the end of the scan.

Grant sighed and withdrew his guns, knives and his garrotte.

_"All_  of it," Mike persisted.

Grant sighed again and rolled his eyes, throwing his hands up as he glanced at Kara.  _Hope you've done recon..._ He reached into his sleeve to withdraw the scalpel blade he'd pilfered from the doctor, tossing it on the table with an audible clink.

Mike gestured him through to the main dining room. With one last glance at Kara, Ward stalked past.

"Ward." Coulson sat in a booth in the otherwise empty room.

Grant settled into the seat across from him, throwing a carefully careless arm over the back of the seat. "I'm flattered...bringing the robot along just for a sit-down with me."  _But not May. Interesting._

"There's no need for false modesty," Coulson said dismissively. "We both know you're that good. But frankly, this isn't about you. I'm after bigger fish - Strucker, List."

_The enemy of my enemy..._ Grant smirked and shrugged. "Can't help you...not in HYDRA anymore."  _And if Kara and I pull this off, HYDRA won't exist anymore either._

"But you  _were_ ," the director persisted.

_Was I really?_ Ward shrugged again.  _Garrett and HYDRA weren't necessarily the same._  "Even then, I only knew them by reputation. Never met either."

"Again with the false modesty," Coulson scoffed. "You're resourceful. Bet you know a guy who knows a guy."

"You know, last time I suggested we work together, you called me a deluded son of a bitch," Grant mused.  _And yet now here you are_...

"Things change," was Coulson's only response. "I'm offering you a deal," he continued. "Help me, and I'll let you walk away, free and clear...no more looking over your shoulder."

_Free and_  - Grant shook himself. "When something's too good to be true, it's a lie."  _I learned that the hard way._

"Not lying," Coulson countered. "I tried the stick with you before. It didn't work so well, so I'm offering a carrot."

_Is that what handing me off to my brother was supposed to be? Motivation?_ Ward smiled. "I'm listening."

"Get me inside," Coulson said softly. "After that, I put you through the TAHITI protocol, and then you're free to go."

"Wipe my memories?"  _Because it was such an enjoyable process for you?_  Grant shook his head. "Well, that sounds like a threat, not a carrot. I  _like_ who I am."

"A murderer and a traitor?" Coulson said with a smile.

_A man trying to find his way, not that you would believe it anymore._  Grant fought to keep his face blank and maintain his feigned nonchalance.  _I murdered for Garrett, yes, but also for SHIELD, and as for traitor, I tried my best to stop them from blowing up the BUS as soon as I got what we needed._ He clenched his fist on the table.  _You're welcome._

"Sorry," Coulson continued. "My offer's the only way you leave here."

Grant could feel the menace of Deathlok radiating from behind his back.  _Definitely not the same Coulson._

"You could have run," the director reminded him. "You  _didn't_. You risked your freedom for her..." Coulson pointed towards Kara. "That  _says_ something, says that maybe there's still good left in you. Maybe Garrett, your family didn't destroy all that."

Ward felt his heart pick up speed.  _You actually believe...You believe me about my family. About what Garrett did..._

Coulson's voice was soft. "TAHITI will erase all the bad, let you be the man you  _want_ to be, start over."

Grant's expression was vulnerable as he questioned softly, "Free and clear?"  _That's what you said. We can deal with TAHITI later, but that part...I need to know now._

"I give you my word as director of SHIELD," Coulson promised.

_No more hiding, no more running..._ Ward steepled his hands and leaned towards Coulson.  _The man I want to be...a man you don't believe is beyond redemption..._ He met the director's gaze steadily. "I might know a guy."

* * *

Jiaying turned to Gordon. "I've searched the records. No mention of precognition."

"Raina could be the first of her kind," Gordon remarked. "I was," he reminded her. "A gift like hers could change everything. Imagine...she could warn us of threats before they happen."

Jiaying inclined her head. " _If_  that is her gift."

Skye knocked and opened her mother's door. "Ah, sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt."  _Much._

"No, we're finished here," her mother said with a smile.

Gordon nodded to her. "I'll let you know how it goes."

Skye watched him leave before turning back to Jiaying. "Was that about Cal?"

Jiaying only gave another tight smile.

"I want to talk to you about that," Skye continued. She took a breath. "Cal's dangerous, I know, but he's better when he's with us."  _And no, that sentence is not applicable to anyone else I know, damn it._

"That may be true, but he can't stay here," her mother said firmly.

Skye grimaced.  _Yeah, as a recent exile myself, I totally get that.._."Well, can we give him a heads-up? Or -"

"And risk how he gets?" Jiaying asked her. "You think you've seen him at his worst. You  _haven't_ ," she emphasized.

"Well, that's my  _point_ ," Skye countered. "You  _know_  how he'll get when Gordon just abandons him in the middle of nowhere."  _Or to the tender mercies of his worst enemies like..._ She blinked and held her mother's gaze _. Stop. Stop thinking._

"Not  _no_ where...we're taking him home," her mother assured her.

"It doesn't matter," Skye retorted. "He will feel  _abandoned_ , and people will get hurt."  _Which is not at all like -_ A voice whispered from her memory that he'd never lie to her, that what he felt for her was real. She focused on her mother to still her mind again.

"Those people aren't my concern," Jiaying dismissed.

"Well, they're  _mine_. I'm a SHIELD agent," Skye reminded her.  _No matter what else I might be._

"The longer he stays, the more attention he draws, the more attention he demands. I can't make exceptions." Her mother cast a grave look at her. "He's not one of us."

Skye looked away.  _No, he's not, but he wants to be...And so did -_

"Sometimes, as a leader, I have to do things I'd rather not do," Jiaying concluded.

* * *

"Get the package?" Coulson asked.

"Just like they said," Mike replied. He looked back towards Ward and Kara. "I still don't trust them."

Coulson scoffed. "Hell, no, but we need them to trust us."

Grant watched as Mike and Coulson talked outside the car. "Something's not right," he murmured.  _Still no backup and no BUS…_ "Why isn't May here?" He shook his head. "There's something Coulson's not saying."

"Which is why we should make a run for it," Kara urged again. "The idea of them wiping away who you are..."

"Hey, no one's gonna wipe anything," Grant told her. He ignored the twist in his stomach at her words of protest.  _Someone who doesn't want to lose me, for the first time in my life_... He looked at Kara. "We have the upper hand. Whatever Coulson's endgame is, doesn't matter because  _he_  is gonna help us get to ours."  _Good planning pays off..._

Kara reached out to pluck the flowerpot from the front seat. "What's this?"

He grinned. "Thought we could put that on the windowsill."

"It's beautiful," she said softly. "It's too bad. I liked our house."

He took her hand. "It won't be our last, promise," he assured her. "At the end of this, you'll be whole. And we'll be together." He cupped her head in his hand and drew her in for a kiss.  _Just don't ask what 'we' I mean..._

Deathlok banged on the side of the car and jerked the door open. "Break it up. Let's go."

Grant and Kara rounded the car to the trunk, opening it to reveal the package in question.

"This just gets better and better," Coulson remarked.

Sunil Bakshi shivered and whimpered as he looked up from the trunk.

Ward smiled at Bakshi. "Not to worry. We are working  _with_  Director Coulson."  _Despite what we may have prepped you for. "_ You're gonna do whatever he says...understand?"  _I hope you do..._

"Of course," Bakshi replied, smiling. "I'm more than happy to comply."

Coulson looked to Mike. "Get him out of there."

* * *

Skye sighed as she knocked on the door. She waited a beat and opened it.

"Hey!" Her father looked over from the bed and quickly rose to greet her. "Um...sorry. I was expecting Gordo," Cal said apologetically.

Skye's smile was genuine as she replied. "He can't like you calling him that."

Her father chuckled. "Oh, he loves it." He held the door open. "Uh, come in," he invited, closing the door behind her. "Uh, so, I was, uh, gonna find you today, but, um, I - I didn't want to overdo it after last night. I - I tend to overdo. Big overdoer." He chuckled again.

"Yeah, I noticed," Skye murmured with a grin.

"Oh, so I guess you heard I'm gonna be out of here for a little bit," Cal offered.

"Yeah, I heard," she confirmed.  _Something like that, anyway..._

"Hey, you want to put in an order? I'll bring you back something from the mainland ... gossip mags, soda pop. Do you like funyuns?" He laughed again.

She gave a light chuckle in return. "I'm...I'm okay, thank you," Skye answered.  _Is this what being alone for so long can do to a person?_  "So, where are you going? China?"

"What makes you think I'd go there?" Cal questioned, horrified. "No. God, no."

"Oh, I-I'm sorry," Skye apologized. "Jiaying said that you were going home, so I just assumed that...that..."  _Where is she taking him?_

"Oh, oh, of course," Cal replied. "No, that makes sense. No, I was in China volunteering for Doctors without Borders."

"Wow," she murmured softly.  _He had to be a good person once, to be doing that_...

"Hard to picture that, right?" Cal teased. "I was supposed to be there two weeks, but I met your mother and I couldn't leave. She stole my heart," he said with a smile.

Skye nodded slowly.  _I was bad for him, he said...and there were things about him I wouldn't like if I knew…_

"No, home is, um, Milwaukee," her father continued. "That's where we were gonna bring you up. I should take you there sometime...I don't know...maybe show you around the old haunts."

_He_ told  _me he wasn't a good man...was he waiting for me to save him?_ Her heart clenched.  _And now my mother is asking me to let her abandon my father..._ "Why not tomorrow?" Skye said impulsively. "I want to go with you."

"Okay," Cal agreed enthusiastically. "Best day ever!"

Skye tried to keep the smile on her face. "Yeah."  _I might not have been able to save him, but maybe I can help my dad..._

* * *

Skye glared at her mother. "You can't just leave him on the side of the road like an unwanted puppy. It's irresponsible and cruel - for both a puppy  _or_  Cal," she clarified, "and Cal's not a puppy - he's a  _pit bull_ , a raging pit bull who will attack if he doesn't -"

"I don't want to hear about the people you think you're responsible for," her mother said dismissively.

"This isn't about them. This is about me," Skye insisted. "You asked me to be decent - give Cal one dinner. I did that. And I... empathize."  _And now, because of that, I can't stop thinking about -_

"After one night, you understand him?" Jiaying asked skeptically.

"Yes," Skye said firmly. "Because I spent my entire life searching for you. I lied and I broke laws just to get the - the  _tiniest_  sliver of information," she admitted. "And I had  _no_  memories of my family. Cal  _had_  memories. He knows what he lost."  _And maybe he's not the only one..._ Skye shook herself. "Listen, I'm…" She sat across from her mother. "I'm not asking you to let him stay," she explained. "Just let me go with him. I'll talk to him. I'll soften the blow - let him know I'll visit and that...he hasn't lost us forever."

* * *

"Bakshi reached out, arranged a meeting with Dr. List," Coulson informed Fitz and Hunter.

"And are we sure we  _trust_  stepford Bakshi?" Hunter said skeptically, eyeing the man in question.

"'Trust' might be a little strong," Coulson admitted.

Ward gave Hunter a patient look. "Bakshi's been instructed to act exactly as he would have... _before_."

"Before the brainwashing," Hunter elaborated. "Oh, well, in that case, I feel comforted."

"Any questions?" Coulson looked at Ward, Kara and Bakshi, while Hunter urged Fitz' fidgeting hand from his holster.

Kara was the only one to reply. "How much longer?"

Deathlok answered from the cockpit. "A couple hours."

Grant looked across the plane at Fitz.  _I remember when his biggest concern was whether Jemma packed him a sandwich for the field_. He smiled to speak but subsided when he remembered Simmons' promise.  _He_ has _to be all right to be out on a mission, though..._ He sighed.  _Damn it, I just want to know._  He grinned. "So, Fitz...how've you been?" Grant held his breath waiting for an answer, his smile fading when Fitz lunged to attack him. Coulson and Hunter jumped up to hold Fitz back.  _Guess that was the wrong move. Damn it._

"Sit down, Agent Fitz," Coulson demanded. "Hey!"

Fitz paced the plane. "Bakshi, sir. Bakshi...no, he is...he is...he's the exact same as Ward."

Grant looked away.  _Like you know anything about me now…_

"So he will double-cross us the second that he's with HYDRA," Fitz accused.

"Yes, he would...if he was going in alone," Coulson replied.

Grant exchanged a look with Kara.  _I told her this would happen._  "He's not?" Ward questioned.

"He'll have his bodyguard with him," Coulson explained.

"That'd be me," Mike supplied.

Coulson continued. "We'll monitor the entire meet through Mike's eye."

Ward considered Coulson.  _Being director really_ has _changed him_..."Dr. List's instructions were explicit...Bakshi was to come alone."  _Good thing we prepared for contingencies._

"Luckily, Bakshi's good at talking his way out of things," the director replied. He turned to the man in question. "Aren't you?"

Bakshi replied eagerly. "I've been told it's one of my more useful skill sets, yes."

"See? No problem," Coulson assured Ward.

Grant exchanged a look with his side of the jet.  _Not a problem at all._

* * *

_Strategy I can do. Plan, attack, execute, regroup, even. Those things I can do without fumbling, without blowing it all to hell. But when it comes to people, when it comes to feelings and...I just can't make it work. No matter how much I want to. I wonder if she knows how much of the real me I let show with her, with all of them, really. I know she doesn't. And obviously Fitz and Coulson aren't going to believe it. So all I can do is collect the pieces I can, and make sure to burn the whole thing to the ground._

_No one will ever have to give up what I did, what Kara did._

_Raina said Skye and I could be monsters together. I never wanted Skye to be a monster. She was the only light in my darkness. I'd never say it, and they'd all never believe it...but I'd much rather be healed and whole. For her, and for me._

_If I can't have that, I'll settle for free and clear._

* * *

Fitz punched up the video feed. "We are online," he announced.

**Dr. List examined the man before him. "It's good to see you alive and well, Mr. Bakshi."**

**"Dr. List, a pleasure," Bakshi replied. "You're a difficult man to find these days."**

**List gestured him towards the seats. "Please."**

Hunter issued the threat assessment. "Three men, heavily armed. Bet there's more where they came from," he added.

_What a revelation._ "Does it matter?" Ward asked. "You've got a cyborg on board with rockets in his arm."  _Not to mention our own mole._..

"He's not a cyborg," Coulson protested. "He's a  _SHIELD_ agent...with rockets in his arm."

Grant tried not to roll his eyes.  _The cyborg can be a SHIELD agent, but the rogue agent dismantling HYDRA piece by piece can't be. Got it._

**"Our world is much more complicated now after the tragic death of Dr. Whitehall and the ensuing bloodbath that it caused," Dr. List commented. "Thank you." He accepted a champagne flute with a smile.**

**"Tell me, Mr. Bakshi, exactly how did you manage to escape unscathed?" List gazed steadily at the newly returned agent.**

**Bakshi raised a brow. "What are you implying, doctor?"**

**"Well, most of HYDRA's leaders were wiped out in one fell swoop, but not you," List remarked. "I was just curious if you might know anyone involved."**

"Let's see how Bakshi holds up under questioning," Coulson murmured.

Ward nodded slightly and started to answer before Kara cut him off.

"He's held up to worse than this," she said firmly.

Grant just watched the director.  _Ask me why, Coulson, ask me why..._

**"You think I poisoned the baroness?" Bakshi asked. "Killed Bloom?"**

**"** _**Someone** _ **put a bullet in his head," List replied.**

**"I assumed it was** _**you** _ **...or Strucker," Bakshi returned. "You had the most to gain, and look - here you sit, alive and well, with more money and manpower than ever."**

"See? Told you he was good," Ward bragged. He tucked Coulson's small shrug of acknowledgement away for future enjoyment.

**"The truth is, I** _**didn't** _ **escape unscathed," Bakshi replied. "I was captured by the U.S. government. Mr. Peterson helped me escape." He waited while List looked over at Deathlok. "You** _**do** _ **recognize him, don't you?" he asked. "Well, you should," he continued. "HYDRA invested quite a bit of funds turning Mr. Peterson into the perfect killing machine - money well-spent, I might add."**

"What's he doing?" Coulson hissed.

"He's gaining List's trust," Grant assured him.

**Bakshi took another sip of champagne. "I know Strucker has been experimenting on powered individuals. I believe that with a compliance upgrade, Mr. Peterson would prove quite useful to him."**

**"You're offering him...to** _**me?"** _ **List asked skeptically.**

**"Consider it a sign of good faith," Bakshi answered smoothly.**

"This wasn't the plan," Coulson bit out, spinning to glare at Ward. "What are you doing?"

Ward fought not to roll his eyes.  _What you_ asked _me to do._ "Getting us to Strucker," he insisted.  _And there is no part of me that's enjoying this because of what Deathlok did to Skye..._

"Bastard sold us out!" Hunter shouted, moving to a defensive stance.

Ward took Fitz' sidearm and drew on Coulson, Hunter gunning for Kara while she held a knife to Fitz' neck.

"Put the gun down now -  _now!"_ Coulson ordered.

_I don't have to take orders from you anymore._ Ward shook him off. "It was the only way."

"I'm not gonna warn you again," the director repeated.

"Will you just listen to me?" Grant fumed. "Do you want to get to Strucker or not?"

Hunter fought to keep from pulling the trigger. "Fitz, are you all right?"

Fitz' voice was strained when he replied. "Yeah, I'm delightful."

"Strucker wants powered people. Bakshi alone doesn't get you to him," Grant insisted. " _Deathlok_  does, and he can take care of himself - trust me."  _If you'd seen what he did to Skye...and that's before whatever upgrades he may have gotten between then and now._

"'Trust me'?" Coulson yelled. "I ought to shoot you just for  _saying_ that."

"Um, sir..." Fitz watched Mike's video feed with alarm.

"What if this goes south?" Ward asked. "Would you have been willing to sacrifice Mike?"  _Come on, Coulson, call it like it is._

"That wasn't your call to make," the director fumed.

Fitz swallowed hard, his voice stronger as he spoke. "Sir, Deathlok is, um..."

Hunter followed Fitz' gaze. "Is that Deathlok's targeting system?"

"Yes, he's gonna -" Fitz fumbled for words. "He's - well, he - he's about to kill everyone."

"Not a bad idea, actually," Hunter mused.

"No, we need them alive," Coulson insisted. "Fitz, tell Mike to stand down."

Kara's grip on Fitz didn't waver. "Yeah, no, that's not gonna happen," he managed.

Coulson looked at Kara. "Let him go, 33."

"My name is  _Kara_ , and I don't work for you anymore," she answered, eyes blazing as she looked to Grant.

"Weapons systems are hot," Fitz updated.

Ward locked eyes with Coulson. "On the count of three, we all put our weapons down."  _She won't listen to you, but she'll listen to me._

"Three!" Coulson shouted.

Everyone lowered their weapons and breathed a collective sigh of relief. Fitz immediately turned to Mike's feed and typed "PLAY ALONG." They all watched as Deathlok's targeting system disengaged, his rockets returning to their concealment.

Coulson held out his hand, taking Fitz' gun back and glaring at Ward. "You pull anything like that again, I'll throw your ass off this quinjet at 20,000 feet."

Ward kept his expression neutral.  _Just remember I didn't fight you for that gun._

**"Doctor, there's been another incident," an agent called to List.**

**"Excuse me," List said, crossing to the screen. "We're close. Put us in the air." He turned to look at Bakshi and Deathlok. "And then...we'll see quite how loyal you and your enhanced friend really are."**

"They're taking off," Fitz reported.

Grant shrugged. "If Strucker's overseas, I'd say that's probably where they're going."

"Then we tail them," Coulson said flatly.

Ward looked at his former director. "And how do you propose to do that without your pilot?"

Coulson pursed his lips, looking at Hunter and Fitz for an objection. He sighed but nodded. "Take the controls."

Ward hopped into the cockpit. "Strap in," he called behind him. He took the pilot's seat, exhaling roughly at the familiar feeling.  _I almost expect to see May coming up behind me._  He allowed himself a smirk.  _Good thing she's not, though. Because she'd kill me for sure._  He took them up and after List's plane.  _But even though May must've trained her, Skye wouldn't..._ He forced the thought from his head and focused on keeping Bakshi and the rest in range.

* * *

Skye watched her father react to the imagined slight as she lifted the cell phone.  _And this is why he's so dangerous..._ She called May, fighting not to run and beg for them to get her.  _Playing along with a psychopath...again._ She stomped on the voice in her head telling her if she thought about it, only one of the men in question really qualified.

* * *

**"We're landing? Already?" Bakshi commented. "I thought Strucker was in** _**Eastern** _ **Europe."**

**"He is," List confirmed. "But first, we're making a stop. Have you heard of quantum entanglement, Mr. Bakshi?"**

**Bakshi raised a brow. "No, I'm afraid not."**

**List continued. "Well, we at HYDRA, for the last several months, actually..."**

"Quantum entanglement?" Hunter questioned. "Sounds like a method of torture."

**"We have found incidents of photon intensity so great that particles can exist simultaneously in two spaces over great distances," List explained.**

"Never liked science or big words," Hunter continued.

**Bakshi frowned at List. "But for something to be in two places concurrently -"**

**"No, no, no. This is a quantum entanglement bridge," List clarified. "We think it was created by a powered person, one we intend to capture."**

Fitz' eyes lit up as the pieces fell into place. "The teleporter - they're tracking the teleporter, the one that, um, took Cal in Wisconsin and - and Raina -"

"And Skye," Coulson whispered.

"This is about Skye," Ward whispered and turned, surrendering the pretense he wasn't listening.  _Skye_...

Kara looked to Ward. "Why would HYDRA want her?"

Coulson and Fitz exchanged a weighty look. "Don't know," Coulson bluffed.

* * *

Cal led Skye down the hall to stop before an office. "Please, uh, excuse the mess... and the, uh, the roaches."

Skye looked at the name on the window as he took out his keys. "Johnson...is that your last name?

"Was. Pretty ordinary, huh?" He unlocked the door. "I changed it to something more sinister when I went on the run."

Skye paused to consider it as she stood in the doorway. "Daisy Johnson. Huh."  _I wonder what kind of girl Daisy Johnson is..._ She followed him in, picking up the hula girl on his desk. "I, um, I had one of these."  _In another life, in another world..._

"Coincidence? I think not," Cal said eagerly. " _Genetics_. Keep it if you like."

_She doesn't belong to me anymore...not_ this _me._ "How is all this stuff still here?" Skye wondered aloud.

"I own the building," her father replied.

Skye blinked at him. "You own the building?"  _Definitely another life..._

"Mm-hmm, every wall, every bulb, every cockroach." He took a deep breath and continued. "I wasn't rich, but you would have grown up quite comfortable." He retrieved the key he needed from his desk. "Had to shutter everything down after, uh - well, you know. Only been back a few times over the years."

"So, this is like your stash pad, where you keep all of your old stuff?" she asked.  _What would I keep? What would he?_

Cal chuckled. "Oh, I like that - 'stash pad.' Makes it sound better than a crappy office." He withdrew a case from a drawer and set it on his desk. "Okay. My grandfather's field kit from WWII. I used this to put your mother back together again."

Skye's eyes shot to her father's face, seeing the anguish in every feature.  _When I was shot, when I was dying...did it break him like this?_

"Truth is, her  _gift_ was the real healer," Cal confessed. "She's a walking miracle, your mother. The way she suffered and endured and fought through it..."

"You still love her," Skye said, the faintest hint of wonder in her voice.  _If you only knew what she's actually planning for you, for us..._

"How could I not?" he replied.

_How many times can she kick you away before that changes?_ Skye looked away from him.  _How many times can_ I  _do the same thing?_

"I mean, I know she resented me for a time after we lost you," Cal conceded, "but I think now that we're back together, that we can -"

"Please, stop," Skye burst out.  _I can't listen to this anymore..._

"What? What?" Cal said, bewildered. "What'd I say?"

"We're  _not_ all back together. You can't hang on to the past like this. You need to move on. We all do," she said emphatically. _We do. Me included..._ She shook herself. "Jiaying...she's responsible for all those people, and I…"  _Am a complete mess._ "I-I'm an  _adult_ now. And as much as you want to turn back the clock to the time of science fairs and father-daughter dances..."

"They're gone, yeah. I know. I know," Cal whispered.

"But, look, it doesn't mean that we can't see each other," she continued. "I could visit -"

"Visit? Where are you going?" he questioned, an edge in his voice.

_Damn it_. Skye hid her grimace. _Screwed that up big time_. She fumbled for words, jumping at the sound of a door.

Her father froze her with a hand to her shoulder and came around behind her, a familiar brush of his arm against her back shooting her gaze to the medical kit.  _I know a lift when I feel it - what did he take from there?_

"Who's there?" Cal demanded. "Come out where I can see you."

"Relax," came Lincoln's voice. He emerged from a room down the hall. "It's just me."

"Lincoln." Skye stalked towards him. "What are you doing here?"

"Jiaying sent me to make sure everything was cool."

"Why wouldn't everything be cool?" Cal questioned, stabbing the weapon he'd swiped from the kit into a metal filing cabinet. "What's going on here? Wait a minute. Y-You think Daisy isn't safe with me?"

"I didn't say that," Lincoln appeased. "Just calm down."

"Don't patronize me," Cal growled. "Who the hell do you think you are? I'm her father!"

"Cal, let me explain," Skye offered.  _I have to be able to help you._  "I -"

"No," Cal interjected. "What an idiot I've been, huh? I see what's happening. You were gonna dump me here like yesterday's trash. You don't want to spend time with me. This isn't daddy's day out. This is goodbye."

"It's not forever," Skye protested.  _But you're making it harder for it to be anytime soon..._ "It...it ... " She took a step towards her father.

Lincoln held his arm out between them. "Skye, don't," he pleaded.

"Her name is Daisy!" Cal burst out, shoving Lincoln into the wall before throwing him down the hallway.

"Cal!" Skye called out.

Cal's eyes blazed with rage. "After everything I did for Jiaying, for our family...years of searching, the pain, and the rejection!"

"Cal, I'm warning you," Lincoln cautioned.

"Oh, you're warning me?" Skye's father retorted.

"Watch out!" Skye shouted as a black-clad intruder emerged from a hallway.

Lincoln lashed out, his electricity knocking the interloper out.

Cal frowned at the scene. "What's SHIELD doing here?"

Skye assessed their uniforms. "It's not SHIELD, it's  _HYDRA_."

The three froze as reinforcements filled the hall.

"Get her out of here," Cal barked at Lincoln. "I'll take care of this." He put on his bumbling, chuckling persona and stalked towards them, hands outstretched. "Hey, hey, fellas, huh?"

Skye moved to follow her father, struggling to shrug Lincoln off when he grabbed her arm. "I can handle myself."

"No, don't use your powers," Lincoln urged. "You could bring the whole building down. I'll help hold them off."

Her father reached the HYDRA forces. "Let's not lose our heads, okay?" He knocked one out immediately, using the body to block the bullets of the other two.

Skye lunged at Lincoln, sending them to the side and into the office.

"Just go, please," Lincoln rasped.

* * *

"Sir, Skye - Skye's here!" Fitz pointed at the video feed where Mike spotted her.

Coulson was at Fitz' shoulder immediately. "Where?"

"10th floor," Fitz replied.

Kara quirked a brow at Grant. "The Skye who shot you three times?"

Grant shrugged. "Four," he corrected as he checked the clip on his now-sanctioned firearm.  _No headshot though. No kill shot._

"Don't even think about it," Coulson snapped at them. "You keep HYDRA off us.  _I'll_ find Skye."

Ward threw his hands up as Coulson charged off the plane.  _I didn't agree to that._

* * *

_This is about Skye. He lost her, somehow. What the hell happened? A teleporter, her father, Skye, Raina...What happened in Puerto Rico?_

_I know I can't ask, but what I can do is what I've always done - find her. Protect her. No matter what the real mission is._

_And maybe she'll tell me why I'm still here to do it._

* * *

"Sir, Deathlok's down," Fitz said urgently. "I've lost his feed." He struggled to make sense of the readings. "Uh. Uh, sir, I think somebody's trying to hack into it."

Coulson advanced down the hall, taking down HYDRA agents in his path as the rest of the team fanned out behind him. Ward took out another agent as he shouted back to Hunter. "We need to split up!"

Hunter nodded. "We'll cover you. Go find Skye!"

Coulson nodded back and took off.

Ward watched as Coulson left them to hold the hallway.  _No way in hell you're going alone._   _Not when this is about Skye._ He ran after his old CO.

"Where the hell is your boyfriend going?" Hunter called to Kara.

"Look out!" Kara warned. She fired past him.

"Aah!" Hunter groaned as a bullet found a home in his thigh.

* * *

Coulson and Ward cleared a path down the hall, searching for a sign of their lost agent among the gunfire.

"Skye?" Coulson called. "Skye!"

They stopped as a body came flying through in front of them, Mike following behind.

Ward glared at the sandy-haired stranger. "Who the hell's  _that_ guy?" he barked.  _What the hell is he doing here with Skye?_

Mike groaned and struggled to his feet. "Don't know. Packs a mean spark," he managed. "I think he's protecting Skye."

"Where is she now?" Coulson demanded. "Can you scan the floor?"

"Optics are down," Mike reported. "I think she went around that corner."

Coulson took off in the direction Mike indicated, Ward close behind him.

* * *

_A mean spark? Someone else powered here? And protecting Skye? From who? From what?_

_And I could tell him one thing for sure - Skye can protect herself._

* * *

Skye threw open the door to the roof and paused.  _I can't just leave them. I'm not leaving anyone again._ She ran back down.

Coulson and Ward fought side by side, resorting to hand to hand with their empty ammo clips.

Ward knocked his sparring partner out, Coulson tossing his into the wall.

Skye froze as she watched them working in tandem.  _Oh my God._

Ward handed Coulson a fresh gun with a nod. Coulson accepted it and looked down the hall. "Skye?" He whispered incredulously.

She turned at the sound of her name, her heart skipping a beat.  _My old life, right there..._

_**"What I want...is to stay here with you and imagine the world outside doesn't exist."** _

Ward's voice and the look on his face as he said it had haunted her more than she dared admit.  _Grant_...Aloud, she only allowed herself, "Coulson?" She stepped towards them.

Electricity crackled and Gordon appeared in front of her, blocking her path. "I need to get you out of here," Gordon declared.

Skye tried desperately to get around him, around the bubble. "No, no, not yet, _no!"_ The last was more urgent as Cal ran from the hall and jumped into the quantum bridge before it closed.

"No, don't go!" Coulson yelled. He subsided as he accepted the teleport had closed.

Ward kicked a HYDRA agent back to unconsciousness and followed towards the spot where Skye had been.

"I had her," Coulson whispered. "Damn it! I had her." He turned as a HYDRA agent came from the same hall Cal had run through, Coulson raised his gun -

Grant fired at the HYDRA interloper, stalking towards the director and adding a double tap for good measure as he passed. "Deathlok's down. We've got powered people on-site. HYDRA's storming the building."

"What happened to you?" Coulson asked as Kara half supported and half carried Hunter towards them.

"Ah, it's merely a flesh wound," Hunter dismissed.

"A bad one," Kara added, looking to Grant.

"We're outmanned, outgunned, and our only backup is Fitz. Your call, boss," Ward said.  _Goddamn, that should not have felt that good to say. I don't do bosses. Not anymore._

_But maybe you miss your real family_ , Skye's voice whispered to him.

* * *

_Skye...What the hell is going on? Who are these people, and what are they protecting you from?_

_You have powers. I know that. But what is it about them that has everyone scrambling? How did you leave? Why?_

_Did they reject you, too? Is that how Raina meant we could be monsters together? Monsters to them, but…_

_What could we still be to each other?_

* * *

**A.N.** : Can't wait for Tuesday.


	3. The Dirty Half-Dozen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "We finally got the team back together." But just how together are they?

"No, no, not yet,  _no!"_ Skye screamed as Gordon took her and her father back to Afterlife.  _Not yet, damn it..._

Cal stormed away from them immediately. "Where's my wife?! Ahh! Didn't expect to see me back here so soon, did you, my love? Not after such a well-planned banishing!"

Skye looked around.  _Wait. Gordon, Cal…_ "Where's Lincoln?" she asked.

"You took me from my home!" her father ranted.

Gordon raised his voice. "All right, that's enough!"

"Cal, this  _isn't_  your home," Jiaying said flatly.

"I know that  _now,"_ Cal snarked back.

"Hey!" Skye interjected. "Lincoln is still out there," she said stridently. "Gordon, can you please -"

Gordon nodded and teleported out.

Her mother turned to Skye. "What happened?"

 _Too much to process._ "There was an attack," Skye managed.  _My old life flashed before my eyes._

"Can we please get back to what matters here?" Cal interrupted. "You tried to take me away from our  _daughter_. It's unacceptable!"

Skye glanced around as whispers and murmurs rolled through the crowd.  _Oh, crap. He just outed us. Awesome._

"Go calm down, Cal," her mother insisted. "You and I can discuss this later. There are worse options," Jiaying reminded him.

 _Like the one I was supposed to execute._ Skye looked to her father and quickly averted her eyes.  _And seeing the way everyone is looking at us now..._

Her mother released a heavy sigh. "Are you okay?" she asked breathlessly.

 _Define 'okay.'_ Skye nodded quickly. "I'm fine. But Coulson was there."  _Among others_...She jumped as Gordon ported back.

"It was HYDRA," Gordon panted. "I tried stopping them. I barely got away." He growled the next sentence. "They took Lincoln."

* * *

_'Your call, boss.' That's what I said. I did not expect him to turn himself in. I get it, though. It's too good of an opportunity to pass up. Plus, knowing Coulson, he's got a bargaining chip we don't know about._

_I just wish I knew that for sure. Too much is riding on this. Too much depends on Coulson alone. That's a scary thought for someone like me._

_Or it would be, except I know him. He wouldn't sacrifice himself unless the team were safe. And hiding out in the quinjet shadowing the BUS and hoping for the best? That's the opposite of safe. That's a ticking time bomb._

_But Phil Coulson has a particular talent for disarming those._

* * *

Skye shook her head as she and her mother stood in her mother's room. "I don't understand," Skye said. "Why was Lincoln there?"  _Why was Ward?_

"Because of  _me_. I asked him to go and protect you, to keep you safe," her mother confessed. "It was a mistake. I should never have let you go at all."

 _Are you kidding?_ Skye looked at her mother incredulously. "It was the  _right thing_ to do."  _Not that I have much practice at that, but I'm trying…_ "We have to make sure that the Cal that we put out into the world is the same Cal that I've seen here - th-the safe and user-friendly Cal."  _Not a monster, not a man with a hole in his heart that darkness could fill..._

Her mother gave her a slightly patronizing smile. "You were trying to make it easy on him," she said, taking her arm. "You were being compassionate."

 _You say that like it's something I'll get over someday..._ Skye gave her mother a serious look. "How do we get Lincoln back?"

"We don't," Jiaying declared. "It's too much of a risk."

 _We what?_ Skye blinked at her mother. "You don't - you don't understand. They will  _torture_ him. They will  _kill_ him."  _Or worse._

Jiaying's face turned to stone. "I know  _exactly_ what HYDRA is capable of doing," she said sharply. "I've carried the memory of what they did for decades."

"I'm sorry," Skye whispered.  _How could I have said that to her, of all people..._ She looked at her mother anew.  _What did_ you _lose to them? What holes are left in you?_

"And I wish I could save Lincoln from that, but I suspect somehow HYDRA is tracking Gordon's movements. Anyone I send will be at risk, too," Jiaying explained. "And Lincoln wouldn't want me to. These people are important to him. He wouldn't want them to risk their lives." Her mother gave her a sorrowful look. "We can't rescue Lincoln - not now. I'm sorry."

 _I don't accept that._ Skye looked at her mother speechlessly.  _I_ can't  _accept that. I can't believe this, but, that's what you lost. You lost your heart. And I'm not even sure you miss it._

* * *

Robert Gonzalez put the cube back on the table with an audible thump. "That's your plan." He eyed Coulson skeptically.

"I take it from your expression, you're not dazzled," Coulson offered in return.

Gonzalez raised a brow. "Why send a small infiltration unit? Why not a full-on assault? Blow the base to particles."

Coulson shook him off. "I'd rather not sacrifice the prisoners. Rescue is ideal," he returned. "We don't even know how many people HYDRA's holding."

"I'm not sure I'm willing to put my people at risk," Gonzalez protested.

"You don't have to," Coulson assured him. "I've already got my own people picked out."

* * *

Fitz settled into a seat next to Hunter. "How you feeling?"

"Nauseous," Hunter replied mournfully.

Fitz hummed sympathetically. "You want me to get -"

"Oh, no, not from getting shot," Hunter clarified. "That's nothing. It's  _those_ two." He grimaced. "I think they actually... _like_ each other."

Fitz looked forward at Ward and Kara chatting. "Just, um, just focus on your wound. It'll be less unsettling."

"You want to take the stick?" Grant offered with a grin.  _Best to be prepared..._

Kara gave him a skeptical look, laughing him off.

"I could teach you," he persisted.  _I was good at that once..._

Kara shook him off.

"Come on," he cajoled. "I think you'd  _like_ to fly."  _It's the ultimate escape, there's nothing and no one that you don't want to be there._

"No," she laughed. "No. If I fly, I'm taking us to Mykonos or Kauai."

Grant looked at her with a grin. "So, you don't like our plan?"  _Our plan. Boss. Why does this feel so damn natural?_

Kara frowned at him. "Grant, SHIELD makes me nervous. Didn't you already fulfill your promise to Coulson?"

"But not my promise to  _you,_ " he protested. "There's still one more thing I need from him before this is over."  _And then I figure out what's next for me._

Hunter looked away as his cell rang. He answered and called forward to Ward. "Green light! Go!"

With that, Ward brought the quinjet in to dock with the BUS.  _Home sweet home..._

* * *

Gonzales greeted May as he stepped from the BUS into the hangar, Coulson, Ward and Kara on his heels.

May nodded at Gonzalez. "Sir." To Coulson, she offered, "Welcome back."

Coulson nodded in return. "Nice to  _be_ back."

Gonzalez turned to Kara and Ward. "You'll be accompanied by guards at all times."

May continued, "Each of whom will shoot you without hesitation." She glared hard at Ward. "Remember that."

Grant turned to Kara with a grin. "May's actually pretty friendly...once you get to know her." He gave May a pointed look.  _Don't think I've forgotten - we_ both _enjoyed our arrangement._ He turned to the guards behind him. "Gentlemen…"  _Let's just make this as painless as possible._ He and Kara walked through the door with the rest of Gonzalez' people.

May lagged behind to talk to Coulson. "You finally come back, and you bring Grant Ward onto the base," she murmured. "I hope this plan of yours works."

"You and me both," Coulson agreed.

* * *

Coulson and Ward joined Gonzalez, May and Morse in the office. "This video feed was streamed from Deathlok's eye less than an hour ago," Coulson explained.

"What happened?" Gonzalez asked as the video cut off.

"It appears HYDRA removed his eye," Coulson replied.

"Well, we've got a problem," Bobbi pointed out. "Without Deathlok's feed, we don't have eyes on the ground."

 _That's what you think_. Ward spoke up from his position against the wall. "Not true. I have a man working on the inside - Sunil Bakshi."

"I know Bakshi," Bobbi replied. "He's a  _HYDRA_ agent."

"Not anymore," Grant countered. " _Now_  he works for  _me." He's the key to burning HYDRA to the ground._

"Says the HYDRA agent," May returned.

"My days with HYDRA are over," Grant corrected.  _That's if they ever counted at all._  "Just an independent contractor," he clarified, before turning to look at Coulson and continuing, "trying to make amends."  _To all of you, and to Kara, and then maybe myself._

"We remain skeptical," Gonzalez commented.

"With good cause," Coulson conceded, "but I believe using Bakshi is the only way for us to successfully infiltrate this base."

Bobbi shook her head as she countered. "The base is in the Arctic circle with nothing around for miles. HYDRA will see us coming."

"Which is why it's critical I take in a small team," Coulson repeated.

Agent Weaver spoke from the screen behind him. "And just to be clear, Agent Coulson, what is your objective here?"

Coulson turned to address her. "We rescue the enhanced prisoners, then disable the missile-defense system so that SHIELD jets can fly in safely to bomb the facility."

"You really believe a small team can do this?" Bobbi asked.

" _My_  team can," Coulson affirmed.

 _My team._ Ward schooled his features to blankness as he absorbed Coulson's words.  _Could I still be a part of that to him? Does Coulson really believe in me?_

"Then I suppose we should put this matter to a vote," Gonzalez concluded. "Agent Morse."

Bobbi's response was swift. "I'm in."

"Agents Weaver and Oliver," Gonzalez prompted.

"No," Weaver said flatly. "Too risky."

"I agree," Oliver said gravely.

Gonzales nodded. "Understood. But I'm voting to go ahead with this." He turned to his left. "That leaves you with the deciding vote, Agent May."

May took a breath. "I'd like a word in private with Agent Coulson first."

* * *

_'My team.' It's one thing for me to call him boss. Out of habit, out of deep dark wishing, out of the fervent desire to be part of the team again. But to hear it come from him...I wish like hell it didn't mean as much to me as it does. It just makes everything else between us and behind us that much worse..._

_I realize that. I really do. But I also feel like I can't let anyone besides Coulson see that. There has to be someone in between Kara's knight in shining armor and the murderer and traitor May sees me as. The question is whether the rest of the team -_ my  _team - is willing to help me find out who that Grant Ward is._

* * *

"What part of "no" didn't you understand?" Gordon fumed.

Skye stalked him down. "The part where you won't take me to Lincoln," she answered.  _If you hadn't teleported me out of there, we wouldn't even be_ having  _this discussion._

"I told you, no one enters or leaves Afterlife until we know it's safe," Gordon repeated.

"It'll be too late by then," Skye insisted. "SHIELD may be wrong about a lot of things, but they never leave a man behind."  _How can you? Especially knowing what we've all been through before we got here?_

Gordon shook her off. "I'm sorry -"

Raina stepped towards them. "Don't give up hope just yet," she said. To Gordon, she explained, "Skye can save Lincoln. I saw her do it."

"Wh-" Skye looked at Raina in disbelief.  _What the hell?_ "You've  _seen_ it?"

Gordon turned to Skye. "We think Raina's gift may allow her to see things before they happen."

Skye smirked. "I thought her gift was spinning really fast to collect gold rings." She chased the ghost of Ward's laughter out of her head.

"Tell me what you saw," Gordon requested.

Raina shrugged him off. "Maybe she's right. What I saw doesn't make much sense." She looked at Skye. "Why would Coulson be working with Ward?"

 _Oh my God. They - she -_ "C-Coulson and Ward were together back at Cal's office, but I didn't...tell anyone," Skye offered shakily.  _And I don't have the time or the energy to think about why I didn't..._

"You have to go," Raina insisted. "You  _do_ go," she clarified.

"Go where?" Skye demanded.  _This is crazy, but when_ isn't  _that my life..._

"Lincoln's in a dark room with two doctors," Raina described. "They're cutting into him. You find him. You're the only one who can save him," she emphasized.

Skye turned to Gordon. "You have to take me."  _If you believe in her, then believe in this,_ please _..._

Gordon shook her off. "I promised Jiaying I wouldn't use my gift."

Raina gave him a look from the side of her eye. "You need permission to save a friend?"

Gordon exploded. "Last time I went back for Lincoln, HYDRA almost captured me. How will this be any different?"

"Because where you take Skye is a  _long_  way from HYDRA," Raina explained.

* * *

"You're taking this too far," Kara protested.

"It's the only way we can move forward," Grant insisted. "I'll go help my team while you stay here and reconnect with your past."  _Boss. My team. Damn it, this all feels too good..._

"That made sense when it was just calling my  _mom,"_ she retorted. "This is something else entirely."

Grant looked at her steadily. "Listen, you're a SHIELD agent, Kara."  _Whether you think so or not._

"I  _was_ a SHIELD agent - a long time ago - before HYDRA took me...before I met  _you_ ," she said emphatically.

Grant took her by the shoulders. "Being a SHIELD agent was  _taken_ from you."  _And from me._ "This is your chance to get that part of yourself back."  _Mine too._  "And I'll keep saying it until you believe me. All you have to do is stay strong." He smiled a little wider and nodded at her.  _And you will. You're in the right place._

* * *

_Like I said. No one should have to sacrifice what I did. I gave up my soul to Garrett's schemes, and I truly am trying to make amends, but...I don't know if anything I do can help Kara more than I already have. And she's broken, yes, but not broken like me. Maybe this time with who she used to be will help her see that._

* * *

Ward watched as the ramp closed behind them.  _Here we go._

Everyone froze as a loud clanking sounded from inside the plane.

Simmons looked around. "What was that?"

"On your knees," May barked, drawing on Ward. Coulson followed suit.

Grant held his hands up. "May, it wasn't me," he said calmly, dropping his pack.  _I'm not going to fight you, but it wasn't._

"Then what the hell was it," Coulson demanded. He spun and aimed at the cabin door as he heard footsteps, lowering his gun as he recognized the figure in the doorway. "Skye," he whispered.

Skye blew out a breath as she hit the landing, gripping the railing and looking around.  _He really is here._ "Hey guys."

"This is great!" Ward said. "We finally got the team back together."  _Time to really make things right..._

* * *

"How are they all?" Simmons asked. "Are you making friends?"

"How did you get the intel about the base?" Fitz queried.

"Can you control your powers, or...?" Simmons let the rest of the question fade.

"Yes," Skye said, looking to Simmons.  _And without those gloves._ She turned to Fitz. "Yes, I-I promise I will tell you guys everything. It's a  _lot_. You might not believe me, but just not now."

"Well, we're just happy to see you, and you're being so secretive," Simmons protested.

 _I don't mean to be..._ Skye shook her head. "No, I'm happy to see you, too, but -"  _I'm an emotional wreck and I'm trying to save the world._

Fitz sulked. "Yeah, we've got a mission to do, not much time, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah."

"No, Ward is here," Skye hissed.  _I didn't expect him to really be part of this._ "I don't want to talk about anything personal in case he -"

"Did I hear my name?" Ward commented as he walked in.  _From you, Skye?_

"He's like the Candyman," Skye whispered.  _Maybe that wasn't the best analogy. Didn't she end up becoming him and freeing him in the end?_

Coulson took a position opposite the screen and called them over. "We should review the op. Ward -

"Mm-hmm," Grant acknowledged.

"I can't believe I'm saying this," Coulson continued. "Bring us up to speed on Bakshi's intel."

Ward punched up the schematics with relish. "All right," he began. "Bakshi's using old HYDRA text channels to provide us with intel, although m-" He glanced at Fitz, who immediately dropped eye contact. "Much of it is, uh-" He looked at May, the rage in her eyes unmistakable. "Much-" Grant sighed.  _How the hell am I supposed to help them if they can't bear to listen to me?_ "All right. Can we just address the elephant on the plane?" he began. "I know. This is weird. Mistakes were made."

"By you," Fitz murmured darkly.

"And people got hurt," Ward continued.

 _"By you,"_  Fitz added again.

 _Damn it, Fitz, I_ know. Grant shook his head and plowed on. "And I could stand here and explain again how my parents and brother left me vulnerable -"

May rolled her eyes. "We all had our traumas, Ward. Didn't turn any of  _us_ into psychopaths."

 _But you wouldn't believe me or care._  Ward pursed his lips. "Well, we all have our own ways of coping, don't we?" he countered. "For example, I was  _yours."_

"Watch it, Ward," Coulson barked.

"Look, I'm just saying we all made mistakes."  _Not that May would even realize I'm admitting she should never have come near me._  "Coulson handed me over to my abuser -" Grant looked over to his former director. "Thank you." He turned. "Skye shot me -"

"After you killed  _how_ many people?" Simmons asked.

"Yeah, and we were a team and a family, and you betrayed us!" Fitz burst out.

"I know," Grant admitted. "It's what I regret the most," he continued, his voice raw.  _It's why I'm doing what I'm doing now._ "Not the lying, the SHIELD agents I had to put down, and -" He looked to FitzSimmons. "I'm sorry - not even dropping you two in the ocean." He took a breath. "It's  _this_. My actions destroyed  _this_. I'll regret that forever."  _In trying to satisfy the one person I thought I owed my allegiance to, I lost the people I really cared about._  "'Cause there were good times. Right?" He smiled at Skye. "Before? I mean, for a while there, we were a good team. Weren't we?"  _I wasn't acting the whole time...don't tell me you were..._

The team sat in silence with the thought, for once not avoiding his eyes.

 _We were...that's what makes it worse._ Skye was the first to speak. "I'm still happy I shot you."  _After all you and I went through...you deserved it._

"Yeah, me too," Fitz agreed.

"Should've aimed for the face," Simmons corrected.

"Yeah," May agreed.

 _So why didn't you?_ Ward looked around at all of them.  _I didn't want to believe we were this far gone…_

Coulson sighed. "Guys...I know this is  _so weird_ , but we have to come back to the mission. Two teams. Skye, Ward, and Simmons on rescue and medical. Fitz and I will break in to missile defense and gather intel. May's with us for firepower."

Skye frowned at him quickly. "Wait. You're not on rescue?"  _Since when?_

"Let me handle the job assignments," Coulson cut her off. "The point is, there's a lot of challenges ahead. We don't want to implode before we even get there," he pleaded. "And, Ward, just...no more talking...to people."

Ward looked down.  _Yeah. I guess not._ He swallowed hard.  _Seems Coulson is the only one who considers me part of the team._

* * *

 _I wanted to correct May - there_ is  _a distinction between psychopath and sociopath, thank you. But what would that have accomplished?_

 _I know May will never forgive me. I violated one too many layers of trust. For that, I truly am sorry. There's no way for me to tell her that, there never will be. But if I can help with this, if I can help with Skye and HYDRA and maybe not be a monster for once, just_ once  _since SHIELD fell...Maybe actions can speak louder than words._

_As for words...Skye's words...I don't know how to feel. Glad she shot me, but not sorry she didn't kill me? Or is the absence of words not the best case scenario I want it to be?_

_The words I_ am  _getting from everyone, though...daggers and blades._

_I'm a specialist, whether for SHIELD, HYDRA or myself. I'm pretty damn sure I've earned every barb._

* * *

"We've been spotted," May called to the team. "It's time."

Ward checked his clip and strapped on his weapons.  _Finally, something I excel at._

I've got visuals on the target," May updated. "Buckle in."

The team scrambled to grab their packs and head for their seats.

"They've locked on," May said urgently.

Everyone buckled in, bracing as the BUS took a direct hit and exploded.

Coulson shook with the jostling of the quinjet. "I'm starting to think this wasn't a very good plan! Is there anything you can do about the drop?" he called to May.

"Not if we want HYDRA to believe we're debris!" May snapped.

"I'm really starting to wish I hadn't eaten that hot pocket earlier," Coulson commented.

"Hold on!" May yelled.

 _Rough landing. I'd have taken copilot if she'd have let me._ Ward held on as the quinjet slowly lowered to the Arctic ground. He looked at the rest of the team.  _At least everyone will have their rage to keep them warm on the trek to the base._

* * *

May and Skye swept the entrance as the team advanced into the room, all pausing and watching a body drop at the end of the hall.

Bakshi stood over the fallen HYDRA operative. "I was being followed," he explained.

 _Which means the clock starts now_. Grant immediately lowered his weapon and held out a hand. "Calm your mind, Bakshi," he instructed. "Your compliance will be rewarded."

"Good to see you again, sir," Bakshi replied. "Where's Kara?"

"Exactly where she needs to be," Grant answered honestly.  _For the first time in a long time._  "Is List still here?"

"Yes, sir," Bakshi confirmed. "In the lab, along with the other prisoners."

"And the mainframe room?" Grant prompted.

"Down the hall, to the left," Bakshi replied.

Coulson looked at his crew. "Everyone clear on their team's objective?"

Bakshi inclined his head. "If it's agreeable, I'd prefer to join Agent Ward's team."

Coulson turned to Skye. "Is that gonna be a problem?"

"Hardly," Skye said dryly.

Coulson gave his last instruction. "Remember, just 15 minutes till Gonzales' jets arrive. Move."

* * *

Ward took the lead towards the lab, Skye on his six.  _This is what could have been, this is_ who _I could have been..._ He waved Bakshi forward to access the keypad.

Bakshi punched in the code and stood back as the door opened. Ward and Skye burst through and started firing.

Grant grinned at Skye behind their cover. "Just like old times, huh?"  _It feels just as good as being with you always felt._

"Not exactly," Skye murmured.  _But some things are still too close for comfort..._ She put the thought from her head and leaped from behind the table to confront the agents remaining in the room.  _I can do this._ She took a deep breath to focus, and sent a wave of force towards them.

 _What is she - holy shit._  Grant watched incredulously as the agents flew through the air to smash into the walls. He stood. "So  _that's_ what happened in Puerto Rico," he said slowly.  _That answers that question_. He glanced at her. "The least you can do is thank me," he prodded.  _Are you really not going to speak to me at all?_

"How about I just don't try to kill you again?" Skye bit out as she left his side.

 _Again?_ Ward watched her as she made her way through the room.  _You didn't try to kill me the_ first _time._

Simmons immediately started tending to Mike as Skye asked after the guy they'd seen in the hallway. Skye took off as soon as Mike told her Lincoln had been moved.

Grant watched as she stalked away.  _I should go with her, damn it, but Simmons and Mike can't protect themselves...I_ know _Skye can..._

"Don't just stand there like an idiot," Simmons chastised as she assessed Mike's injuries. "Go and find something we can carry him out on."

Ward frowned but turned.  _She's right. We're going to need a better extraction plan with Mike._ He left them to search.

* * *

Skye charged into the other operating room, drawing on equal parts rage and training to take out the team guarding Lincoln.  _Definitely not like old times. But I think he was impressed_ …

She squashed the part of her that lit up at the thought as she stood over Lincoln, listening to the flatline. "Lincoln...Lincoln, wake up," she demanded.  _I cannot lose anyone else. I refuse_. She looked and Lincoln and remembered Raina's words.  _If I'm the only one who can save him...what's special about me?_

She held her hands above Lincoln's chest and concentrated on vibrating his heart. An electrical spark appeared between them and Lincoln's heart started beating. She felt for his pulse and exhaled heavily. "Oh my god," she whispered. "Raina was right."

* * *

Grant opened cases in the storage room, rummaging for something of the right size and heft.  _Never would've pictured the day where Simmons is regularly in the field. Guess I've missed a lot._ He moved another tarp.

"Sir, watch out!" Bakshi launched himself at Simmons, grappling with her until he froze. "Ah!" He screamed as he turned to ash and crumbled to the ground.

Grant spun in time to see it happen, pulling his gun on Simmons.  _That - that was a splinter bomb._ "We're on the same team," he said in disbelief. "What were you  _thinking?"_

"That I made you a promise," Simmons said shakily.

"What? That  _you_  would kill  _me_?" Ward shook his head. "I thought we moved past that."

"Go on," Simmons challenged. "Get it over with, you  _monster_."

 _Skye's not a monster and neither am_ I _._  "You really  _have_  changed, Simmons."  _May, I would expect, but Jemma..._ "I'm disappointed in you."  _Not that it would matter to you._  He shook his head and left the room.

Simmons watched him, exhaling unsteadily as the door closed behind him.

* * *

_And in that one exchange, Bakshi and my HYDRA Intel are gone, and whatever redemption I was hoping for is proven a lie._

_Simmons and a splinter bomb. Did I do that to her? Was it Fitz? Or has the world just gone too mad for her, so she went crazy to match it?_

_One thing is for sure. I'm not going to stay around to find out. I'll have to find my own way._

_I wish I were more surprised._

* * *

Simmons burst into the room where Skye hovered over Lincoln. "Is he okay?"

"Where are Ward and Bakshi?" Skye asked.  _Why was that my first response?_

"They're not coming with us," Simmons replied.

 _They're not coming with us...but they're alive?_ Skye shook herself. "Okay. Come on. We don't have much time."  _Besides, I already know Grant Ward is a survivor._

* * *

 _Good thing I had a contingency plan in place. There was something that wouldn't let me believe it'd be as easy as Coulson made it out to be. Not a lie, but...Coulson always saw the good in me._ Me.  _Not the facade, not the cover. I get the feeling he saw me through all of that._

_I thought Skye did too...but I guess the time for that has passed._

_Time to regroup now. No Kara, no Bakshi. But maybe it left a little equity behind. Hopefully._

* * *

Simmons rushed Mike and Lincoln passed Coulson and through to medical. The director paused at the end of the ramp as his cell rang. "Hello?"

Grant let out a breath he hadn't known he was holding as he registered the background noise. "Sounds like you made it out okay."  _Wonder if anyone counted the agents I took out to clear your exit. You're welcome_.

"I'm surprised you didn't join us," Coulson returned.

 _I would have, if Simmons hadn't made it clear she was serious about trying to kill me_...He kept his answer light and sarcastic. "I thought it might be in my best interest to find an exit that wouldn't, oh, land me in a cell afterwards," he answered. "Or, you know, my brain erased."  _If all I can have are the memories from before I ruined everything, at least let me keep them._

Coulson gave a small smile. "Well, I'm glad you made it out all right."

"Yeah, we both know that's not true, Coulson," Ward replied.  _You weren't done with me yet, I know that._

"You want to tell me what this call's really about?" Coulson asked.

"I always knew the team wasn't gonna forgive me," he explained.  _Liar,_ Christian's voice whispered. "Some people just don't  _deserve_  forgiveness."  _My family didn't...and maybe I don't either. Not yet._ "But Kara? She  _does_. That's why I've returned her to SHIELD."  _At least_ one _of us deserves to be free and clear..._

Coulson started to respond. "Ward, there's -"

"She was a good agent - a good person," Grant argued. "Then HYDRA ambushed her safe house and took that from her - took everything."  _I know how that feels._

Coulson watched Kara through the window, seeing the confusion on her face as Ward and Bakshi didn't appear.

"Whitehall broke her, and I've tried to fix her, but..." Grant blew out a breath. "I'm just not the right man for it. Just not enough good left inside me."  _Not anymore, not by the team's standards_. "She deserves better."  _She definitely doesn't deserve to be punished for my sins._

Coulson nodded. "I'll see what I can do."

"I know you'll do the right thing," Grant replied.  _You always do, in the end._  He blew out a breath and hung up.  _Now to figure out what the right thing is for me..._

* * *

Skye sat vigil over Lincoln. "Come on, Lincoln. Wake up."  _No one else is leaving me today._  She frowned.  _Why did I have to think of it like that?_

* * *

 **A.N.** : Did the best with what I had, and here's hoping next week brings more Skyeward potential! Thanks to all of you who are enjoying :)


	4. Scars

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alternate take on "Scars", probably now completely committed to AU

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I had a choice with last week's ep, and it tripped me up for longer than I would have liked. Do I ignore Ward, or do I take creative license and commit to this being AU? I went with creative license and AU, so...please enjoy and forgive me if you're disappointed I went astray!

 

**Chapter 4: Scars**

_I hate waiting. I always have. I hated it when it was waiting for Christian's next twisted game, I hated it when it was waiting for Garrett to come back for me, I hated it when it was waiting to be found out as the double agent I was._

_But this waiting...this is worse. First off - it's longer than it was supposed to be. Thanks to Stark for that. Our original rendezvous was obviously not going to work - not once Sokovia started floating away. At least the chaos let Kara get me a message, so I know for sure she's safe. But now, I'm waiting for a traitor, knowing Kara is alone with the team that hates me. They'll remember that now that Ultron's gone. It's having to rely on Coulson, to make sure that Simmons can see the difference between me and Kara. It's having to completely let go of control. It really is Kara's op now. That doesn't come easily for me. But I'm trying. I'm trying to trust, to be better, to let people in. I'm trying to be a better person._

_We just both need some closure first. Hopefully Kara's closure will be less...explosive than mine._

_Then again, knowing what I know? It might just be worse._

* * *

Fitz and Simmons watched Skye sitting vigil over Lincoln.

Fitz spoke quietly. "She's been in there every day. You think she'll stay when he wakes up?"

Simmons shrugged. "She says she wants to take him home, whatever that means. She won't say much else about it - not to me, anyway." Simmons turned as a beep sounded from behind them. "You can go ahead and take that off now, Agent Palamas."

Kara took the monitor off. "Thanks."

Simmons hummed thoughtfully. "Your brain scans look rather normal, considering."

Kara frowned. "What does that mean?"

Simmons gave her a small smile. "Well, you'll still have some memory gaps, obviously, but any part of the HYDRA indoctrination that was affecting your actions is gone," she explained. "Your mind's your own again."

"Thank you -  _both_  of you," Kara said with a smile. "Honestly, I think knowing Bakshi's gone has helped more than anything." She turned to Simmons. "You know as well as I do what a monster he was. You were undercover at HYDRA with Agent Morse, weren't you?"

Simmons shrugged. "Well, sort of. I didn't know she was there at the time. She had very dark hair. But she did save my life when it came - "

Simmons and Kara froze as the lights started to flicker.

Skye watched Lincoln's chest rise and fall. _What is it with me and the men in my life? Can't anything with them be easy?_ "Hi," she said, recognizing the meaning of the power surge. "It's okay. I'm here. You're safe now." She smirked. "Added bonus - you're not naked with needles poking out of your skin." She grinned as Lincoln laughed.

Lincoln looked around, his eyes widening as he caught sight of the door. "Skye, why are we -  _no_."

Skye followed his eyes. "Oh."  _We're at SHIELD after he was just captured by HYDRA..._ "Uh...uh, it's okay. You can trust them. They're my friends. They helped save you."  _And once upon a time they helped save me too._

"You never should have come for me," Lincoln muttered, removing all the medical equipment he could reach.

 _You too?_ Skye frowned at him. "I  _had_  to. Jiaying wouldn't allow it if I -"

"There's a  _reason_  for that," he hissed. "The only thing that's kept us safe all these years is that we were a secret. Now SHIELD knows we exist. And they won't stop till they find Afterlife."

Skye looked around.  _But, they're my friends. My family. Aren't they?_  She looked at Lincoln and the desperate panic on his face.  _Aren't they?_

* * *

_I've really tried to help Kara as much as I can. I don't know that anyone would believe me about the relief, the freedom, that came after Garrett, Christian, my parents, after they were all gone. There's nothing as cathartic as actually eliminating the demons in your head. Closure. But that only comes after validation. My family admitted what they'd done, what I'd been forced to do, and then they were gone, like mist, like a bad dream. With Garrett...he was willing to give me what I wanted only because it was what he needed. Raina showed me that. And then Coulson took him out. To have her and Coulson asking me to look for the good that might still be buried in my twisted heart - it messes with me when I'm not paying attention. Waiting gives me time, and that's not a good thing._

_I would feel better if I could at least monitor how things were going. It still amazes me that Bakshi's gone, that Simmons actually tried to kill me. I would've gone back if she hadn't. The cage wasn't the worst, and knowing SHIELD protocol, it might still smell like Skye...But Simmons really did disappoint me. I thought she would be able to understand, to be Machiavellian about it all. After going undercover at HYDRA, I thought she'd have a thicker skin._

_I'd be wrong, apparently. Not the first time, and not the last. Sometimes I wonder if I'm the alien. I'm more Loki than Thor, more Winter Soldier than Captain America._

_I wonder if there's an opening now that the Winter Soldier went underground...That job, at least, would be something we'd all agree I'm good at._

* * *

Gonzalez shook his head as the council and Coulson assembled to discuss Raina and Gordon's visit. "Should have destroyed it when we had the chance."

Bobbi frowned. "You know we couldn't risk it."

"There were too many variables," Weaver agreed.

"So this is alien," May said tentatively.

"Recovered from a dig site nearly a hundred years ago," Gonzalez confirmed.

"Its energy signatures are unlike anything we've seen before," Weaver added.

Hunter continued drawing spikes on Raina's file photo. "Mm. And does anyone have any idea what alien world it came from or what it even does?" He looked around, met only with blank stares. "Oh, this new SHIELD brain trust seems to be working out brilliantly."

"Anything about it in Fury's toolbox?" Gonzalez asked Coulson.

"Just that HYDRA was looking for it," the director replied.

"Well, now you have a new interested party," Bobbi remarked.

Gonzalez stared at the screen. "Question is, why?"

* * *

Coulson and May eyed Skye as the three of them spread through Coulson's office.

"I have no idea." Skye shook her head.  _I wish I did._  "Seriously, I have never heard of anything like that before, and neither has Lincoln."  _I wonder what Raina knows..._

"And you believe him?" Coulson asked.

 _Wait. What?_ "Why wouldn't I?" Skye countered.

"You barely know him," Coulson challenged.

"I know  _enough,"_ Skye snapped back.  _I didn't know you guys either..._ "He and Jiaying  _helped_  me. They never tried to hurt me. Th-They taught me to channel my power so I wasn't hurting myself."  _While showing you how to use them to hurt other people?_ a familiar low voice whispered to her. _Oh, right - to 'defend yourself.'_ She shook it off. "These are good people, Coulson."

"Are they?" he asked. "People, I mean." He paused at her expression. "Look, I know you feel connected to this group, but you won't tell us much about them, you're keeping to yourself..."

"I've been taking care of Lincoln," she protested.  _First FitzSimmons, now you..._

"Okay, but from our perspective, we don't even know what to call them," Coulson amended.

"Inhumans," Skye answered softly.  _That's the first time I've said it out loud. I'm an Inhuman._  "Our ancient ancestors called themselves Inhumans, and we just want to be left alone." She looked away.  _Oh, shit. That was probably not the best word choice..._

Coulson looked at her. "'We'?"

May jumped in at the awkward moment. "If they want to be left alone, then why infiltrate a military vessel?"

"You're assuming that this thing is a  _weapon_ ," Skye remarked. "Well, it's in SHIELD's possession," she pointed out. "Maybe they're just afraid of it - afraid of what Gonzales might do with it."  _I can't blame them, knowing what Gordon rescued me from..._

"We're not the enemy here," Coulson responded.

"This man teleported onboard, Skye," May added. "He's  _clearly_ very dangerous."

"Well, same could be said about  _you_ , May," Skye snapped. "I heard about what happened to that little girl in Bahrain. Jiaying told me the whole story."  _Their version of the whole story, that is,_ the voice she'd been struggling to forget whispered again. Skye dismissed the thought out of hand. "Did you know that she was Inhuman?"

May stood silent.

"They  _both_  were," Skye continued.  _And they both died because of it._ "So  _you_ , of all people, should understand why they'd want to keep their location a secret - what they're so afraid of."

* * *

_I wonder if Simmons was in on it. I wouldn't have thought so a few days ago - I told Kara as much - but that's relying on the Simmons I knew, or thought I knew. This Simmons - the one who brought a splinter bomb to a rescue mission - might be capable of it, though._

_Giving SHIELD a day or two to recoup after the world nearly ended again, standard scans on Kara should be over soon. She'll give me the sign, and I'll head to the new rendezvous. Took a little doing to get this close to Sokovia, but at least it gave me a chance to do a little good. Whether they'd believe it or not. Easy enough for a specialist to get a uniform and just follow evac protocol. I never wanted civilian casualties if I could help it. Garrett always called that a weakness, called me soft. I just never saw the point of sacrificing innocent lives - that's what would get people looking, that's what would get us caught._

_In the end, it's exactly what did. If Skye had never found that Koenig, if I hadn't killed him...I hate thinking about it, because it means imagining how good it could have been. How we could have been together._

_Maybe that's why I'm still here, so I can still wonder what I lost. So I can bite my tongue and taste her, and punish myself over and over when I look at Kara's face and wish it was hers._

_I hope closure comes soon._

* * *

Skye walked quickly to keep pace with Coulson through the hallway. "No, you cannot go there," she protested.  _Please, don't ruin this for me…_ "Listen, secrecy is what they value most."

Coulson's mouth was a thin line as he bit out his reply. "We can't ignore their existence. They're not ignoring ours."

"Please!" she pleaded.  _They were ignoring you just fine until I came along..._

Coulson sighed. "Look, at the very least, we need to find out how many people we're dealing with, assess their powers, place them on the index. You  _know_ how this works. You're a SHIELD agent."

"I-I don't know  _what_ I am anymore," Skye admitted. She heaved a deep breath. "Okay, just... let Lincoln and I go first. They're probably worried about us. I'll talk to Jiaying, explain why you're coming, that you just want to help. She'll listen."

"How can you be sure?" Coulson questioned.

 _And this is where things get interesting..._ Skye swallowed and replied. "Because she's my mother."

* * *

Bobbi watched as Kara went by, flanked by SHIELD agents. "We're locking her up?"

"Don't tell me you empathize," May chastised.

"She was one of  _us,_ " Bobbi protested.

May stared at her. "So was Grant Ward," she reminded the other agent. "Look, when she takes your face, then we can talk."

* * *

Kara looked around as the SHIELD agents led her through, Grant's words echoing soothingly in her head. It all looked like he described, as though they hadn't bothered changing protocols. She made a note to mention it to him - he'd appreciate that. She knew how much he missed them, the team, SHIELD, but that ship had sailed, he said. She took a breath and started to strategize her escape.

* * *

_I haven't dreamed about what comes next. After Kara's closure, after we're finished...where do we go? What do we do?_

_Do I have a choice in the matter?_

_SHIELD isn't usually willing to give up on targets easily - but the question is, with Coulson in charge, am I still a target? I suppose I'll see how easily Kara can get to me - the less they've changed, the faster it'll be. Shift changes, sympathetic guards, and the flying lessons...It'll be that much clearer where I stand._

_I just really hate the waiting._

* * *

Skye eyed Simmons as the biochemist walked into the room. "You finish indexing Lincoln?"  _I wonder what my entry looks like..._

"Yes. But, um, I actually went to get - well, I - I thought you might like this." Simmons showed Skye the hula girl in the palm of her hand. "Snagged it off the bus before it went down. Thought it might be something you -" Jemma shook herself and handed it over. "Well, anyway, here you go."

 _Another life, another me..._ Skye smiled at her friend. "Thank you," she said, chuckling softly.

Fitz grinned. "Yeah, she, um ... she shakes. But you're not doing anything." He gestured at Skye. "That's why it's funny."

They all laughed until Coulson and Lincoln walked in. "Time to go," Coulson declared.

 _I miss this so much..._ Skye gazed at her friends.  _Why does it have to be a choice?_ She zipped the hula girl into her pack and left FitzSimmons behind.  _I may not know why, but it's definitely a choice._ She eyed Lincoln. "How did it go?"

"The indexing?" Lincoln clarified. He shrugged. "They just asked a lot of questions. But I'm sure you guys already have my blood from when I was out, right?" He looked ahead to Coulson.

"It's protocol," the director confirmed.

Lincoln narrowed his eyes at Coulson. "HYDRA said the same thing."

"I know you've been through a lot, but you can trust us," Coulson countered. "You'll see." He turned his attention to Skye. "So, how does this work? You just click your heels together and whisper, 'there's no place like home'?"

 _We don't even have to whisper._  Skye gave a half smile. "Sort of, actually. Gordon explained it. He can sense us. It's this thing called quantum entanglement, and, um…"  _I don't quite think that's what AC was asking._  "Yeah, he'll - he'll find us. As long as we're nowhere near any of you guys."  _Sorry, Coulson._

"Okay. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Okay." Skye bit her lip.  _I wish I didn't feel like no matter what I do, I'm hurting someone I care about._ She looked back at Coulson as the door shut.

* * *

_We're a go. About time. I thought I knew this team, knew them better than they knew themselves, but...something really did change them. I know part of it was me, I know I broke it, but I didn't break them nearly as badly as they broke themselves in the aftermath. I thought the good guys were always supposed to come together, support each other - just look at what Coulson's death did for the Avengers._

_But instead of it bringing them together, they were torn apart. How did he miss that? Was he so busy feeling betrayed? That's true, it wasn't just me - there was May too. The two people who were supposed to be trusted to have his back, to be the muscle when he needed it - we both betrayed him in our ways. Interesting to wonder whose cut him deeper. I'd think it'd be May, and that could explain why Mike was on that mission, not Skye. Well, that and how much May hates me._

_Outnumbered and misunderstood. What a cliche I've become..._

* * *

Skye ran straight to her mother as Gordon's bridge faded, hugging Jiaying tightly.  _Just tell me everything's going to be okay..._

"Are you all right?" Jiaying asked.

"Yeah," Skye answered softly.  _At least, I think I am._

"What happened?" her mother inquired with a frown.

"A lot," Lincoln said. "But I'm okay."

"A doctor at SHIELD patched him up," Skye added. ' _A doctor', like it was just anyone. My_ friend _. One of my_ best _friends. Or at least, I thought so, before..._

"SHIELD?" Jiaying said sharply.

 _Who am I anymore?_ "We need to talk," Skye murmured urgently.  _That reaction alone..._

"Go to the recovery room," Jiaying said to Lincoln. "Have one of ours take a look at you." Turning to Skye, she continued, "Come. Tell me everything."

Skye followed her mother back to her office, filling her in along the way.  _At least as much as you trust to tell her. Funny how you said you were a SHIELD agent when you got here, and you can admit to Coulson you don't know what you are anymore, but to your own mother you have to always be on her side..._ Skye shook Ward's voice from her mind and focused on her mother's response.

"And you were just beginning to like it here," Jiaying said mournfully.

"We don't have to leave," Skye persisted. "SHIELD doesn't want that, either. Nothing has to change."  _Who are you trying to convince?_  came the whisper again.

Her mother gave her a patiently patronizing look and sighed. "Sometimes, I forget how young you are."

"Please just sit down with him," Skye pleaded. "Coulson - he's a good man. He's - He's the only person who's ever tried to take care of me."  _Are you sure?_ the husky voice questioned. She shoved the thought away. "And... until now, he's the closest I've had to family."  _Maybe even still?_  Skye swallowed hard. " _Please_ , Mom."

* * *

"Bobbi, Coulson wants us to scout ahead." May fell into step beside Morse down the hallway. "Already locked in the coordinates."

Bobbi nodded automatically. "Okay."

* * *

_I'm glad we had that flight time on a Quinjet. It was the perfect opportunity to make sure Kara's skills were ready. Autopilot will really do most of it, but there's the comfort level behind the stick that you can't fake._

_Or at least, most people can't fake. Train with Grant Ward, though, the traitor, the mole, whatever you would call me...my entire job was to pretend. I only wish I'd done a better job pretending to myself._

* * *

"Mack quit today," Bobbi offered. "You ever wonder who you'd be without SHIELD?"

May pursed her lips. "Actually, been giving that a lot of thought recently. You?"

"Hunter asked me to leave once, to be with him," Bobbi said softly. "It was the one time I was tempted to walk away."

* * *

_I hate that the plan was to let Bobbi take Kara. I wanted to keep training, I wanted to push harder - but then I remembered. This plan, the end of it, was to be free. Not to have more red in my ledger, as Romanoff would say. So I made sure I grabbed an icer when I was packing my gear for List's base, and more ammo than Simmons would ever have given me credit for. I didn't want to turn Kara into me. I won't do that to anyone else._

_It really does get under my skin, knowing that Simmons still believes the worst of me, and that Fitz does too. I don't think any of them were raised by sociopaths - I didn't stand a chance. But of course they'd believe it didn't matter._

_That's the arrogance of SHIELD, the hubris that always allows decay at the core. SHIELD wants to believe all wounds can heal in the same way, that all damage done to a heart and soul can be processed and moved past with the right time and care. Some wounds are too deep, some damage too heavy, that the weight to counter that, the thing to bring peace and closure, would have to be so extreme that most couldn't stomach it, wouldn't believe it. SHIELD definitely wouldn't. But that's why the beautiful parasite appeared - deny the dark exists, and it can even survive in the light._

* * *

Bobbi frowned at the control panel. "Hey, May, autopilot has us descending. You sure about those coordinates?"

May pulled her gun on Bobbi. "Funny how you're so broken up about betraying Hunter," she remarked. "'Cause it seems like you couldn't care less about what you did to me."

Morse froze as recognition dawned. "Kara."

Kara touched the control, dropping May's face and projecting her own. "You just sat there, pretending to comfort me," she hissed. "But you were just trying to see if I remembered. Well, I  _do_."

Kara and Bobbi fought as the plane descended, exchanging blows through the cargo hold. Kara exhaled as Bobbi grabbed the roof, bracing for the kick to come. She grunted and fell to the floor.

Bobbi dropped the ramp, stepping out into the green countryside exhaling heavily.

 _Finally._ Ward took aim, and fired.  _Time to finish this._

* * *

"I always knew my life was building up to something... that I had a purpose. It's nice to finally see what it is." Raina turned to look at Gordon. "Where did you take Jiaying? I would hate for her to be someplace uncomfortable."

Gordon didn't respond, the people entering the room making any explanation unnecessary.

"Some would call your transformation a curse. But at Afterlife, we choose to call it a gift," Jiaying declared. "Why? Because we don't want the way that others see us to define who we are. But you have used your powers to manipulate those around you, and you've taken advantage of my good faith."

"No," Raina protested. "You have to listen to me."

Skye looked at her dismissively. "Don't. It's the same with you every time."  _With you, with Ward, no matter what. I can't forget who you are and what you've done._

"No, it's not!" Raina protested. "I'm trying to save us!"

"There's not a single soul that knows you who trusts you, Raina," Jiaying declared. She turned to the other woman with them. "Keep her here until SHIELD is gone. Then we'll decide your fate."

Raina shook her head. "You have to believe me. Something terrible is going to happen unless you do what I say!" she called after them. "You'll regret this," she whispered.

* * *

Skye watched her mother and father holding hands.  _How can she just - I mean, I know why she's turning him over but - why don't I trust this? Why is there part of me that thinks Raina is right?_ She looked up as the door opened.  _Well, there's my first problem_. "Where's Coulson?"

"At headquarters. And I represent SHIELD with his same intentions." Gonzalez nodded towards her father. "I might ask why  _he's_ here, though."

"You returned Lincoln and Skye to us. We'd like to return someone of interest to you," Jiaying explained. "He's killed agents of yours, hasn't he?"

"Uh, no. No, not SHIELD agents," Cal remarked. "I don't think. No, just people...who had it coming."

Jiaying didn't respond to him, instead continuing to address Gonzalez. "We pride ourselves on doing the right thing. And as much as this pains me, I do understand the larger goal."

"I'll call one of my people to take him," Gonzalez replied.

"Skye can," Jiaying offered. She turned to her daughter. "Would you take your father to the agents outside? I'm sure Mister...?"

"Gonzales, Robert," he answered.

"Robert and I have much to discuss," Jiaying finished.

Skye exchanged a look with her mother and father.  _I wish I knew why it had to be like this, but...I can't lose anyone else._ She nodded and escorted Cal from the room.

"You know, I was always excited to meet you," Cal said, smiling. "Even when you were a little bit of nothing in your mother's belly." He chuckled. "Oh, I had all these ideas in my head as to what kind of woman you'd turn out to be, and…" He stopped to look at her. "You really  _are_  magnificent. I'm very grateful I got a chance to know you."

 _My dad. My real dad._ Skye smiled shakily.  _Why do I have to choose between them?_ "I'm glad I got to know you, too." She relinquished him to the agents and went in search of May.

* * *

_I missed that feeling more than I should have. A gun in my hand, taking someone out...I wonder if the damage is irreversible, if Garrett and my family have ruined me. I don't want to believe that, but sometimes it's so seductive. No need to struggle or suffer to do the right thing. Just point and shoot and eliminate your problems and your enemies..._

_But this is about closure, and that's not nearly that simple._

* * *

Skye frowned at May. "What happened to Coulson? Did they do something to him?"  _He said he'd see me tomorrow when we left. Did he know he wouldn't?_

May's face was stoic as always. "We all felt that it was best to have someone more objective to meet with your mother."

 _Objective? Him?_ Skye blinked at her former SO. "Gonzales sent people to  _kill me_ a few weeks ago."

"He's a much better man than you think," May countered.

 _Is he really._ Skye pursed her lips.  _You still won't convince me he's better than Coulson._ She raised a brow _._ "What about you? Why can't you be in there right now?"

May sighed heavily. "I told you, we needed someone objective."

Skye just looked at May blankly.  _So what does that say about what you think of me?_

May looked at Skye for a long moment. "I hope your mother is everything you wanted her to be," she said softly.

 _I don't know anymore...I really don't know..._ Skye watched as the second person to ever try to take care of her walked quickly away.

* * *

"SHIELD has a very long and sometimes violent history with enhanced people, but the truth is, sometimes good people get powers, and sometimes bad," Gonzalez explained. "We're there to protect the public when it's the latter."

Jiaying eyed her guest. "And how would you like me to help you do that?"

"I would like to meet your people, learn about their powers," he replied. "We'll keep a record, and if any ever try to do someone harm, we'll be there to stop them. That's why SHIELD exists."

"I have a gift in return ... a piece of our history, something that might interest you. May even be worth indexing. That's what you like to call it, right?" Jiaying extracted the cloth-wrapped rod and turned back to Gonzalez. "I have lived enough life to see countless people profiled for their differences. It's amazing how many generations fall into the same trap. What is it that makes people feel they have the right to do that? Fear. That's what it is."

Gonzalez eyed her warily. "SHIELD's goal is to protect everyone."

* * *

May glanced around and opened a comm to Coulson. "They turned over Cal."

The director paused to absorb the information. "We'll deal with him when you get back to H.Q."

"We found these vials on him, ma'am." An agent held up empty test tubes, a trace of yellow liquid remaining.

Weaver frowned at Cal. "What are these?"

Cal inhaled deeply and grinned. "Beats me."

* * *

"We only had five Diviners in our possession. I knew if they were destroyed, we'd lose our ability to transform - an entire race gone forever," Jiaying explained to Gonzalez. "So we decided to make our own. As some have said, discovery requires experimentation. Eventually, we melted a Diviner down and grew new crystals from it. Unfortunately, we could never quite separate the Diviner metal out." She spun the crystal in her hands. "It's now laced within them." She brandished the rod. "See? This wasn't a problem for Inhumans, of course. The Diviner's harmless to us. But for humans...well…" She smashed the crystal on the desk, releasing the Diviner metal.

Gonzalez gasped as the gas hit him.

Jiaying gazed at him, eyes blazing. "Let's hope you're one of us."

Gonzalez struggled against the stone solidifying his body. "No! Stop!"

"How dare you compare your scars to mine?" Jiaying scolded. "You're  _nothing_ like me, like  _us_. Whitehall cut me to pieces," she spat. "He ripped out my organs and stuffed them in jars! I will never let that happen to my daughter - to any of my people!"

"You'll get everyone killed, you crazy -" Gonzalez' voice cut off abruptly as the Diviner took its toll.

Jiaying took the gun from Gonzalez' hand, drawing deep heavy breaths before shooting herself once, and again.

* * *

Skye caught her breath at the sound of the gunshot. "Mom? What's going on in there?"  _I knew it should've been Coulson, I knew it..._ She ran down towards her mother.

Jiaying staggered into the courtyard.

"Mom?"  _What the hell did he do?_ Skye ran through to her mother's side. "Mom!" she screamed.

"He tried to kill me. SHIELD tried to kill me," Jiaying gasped. "This is war." Jiaying groaned and collapsed.

"Mom!"  _No!_ Skye closed her eyes and willed the words away.

* * *

Grant ignored the voices seeking Morse's ETA and smiled at Kara. "You did good, baby. Fooled every one of them."

"It was hard being away from you," Kara murmured.

Grant touched the side of her head gingerly, checking for a bump.  _Not bad. No signs of concussion._  "It's better when we're together." He traced a thumb down the blood near her eye.  _I'm not leaving anyone else I care about unprotected._

"Why can't we kill her now?" Kara asked, glancing at Bobbi on the floor.

"Closure's about so much more than that," he explained. "It's about digging in, doing the work. I'll show you what I mean." He shrugged. "And  _then_ we'll kill her."

Kara frowned. "She's waking up."

Grant sighed. "We don't want that."  _Not yet, not until we're ready to finish this._ He shot Bobbi with the icer again. And a few more agains.

* * *

 _Ironic, isn't it, that a traitor would make me this angry. But Kara - she didn't deserve to become a weapon, a pawn. Bobbi fed her to the wolves without a thought. My parents corrupted me before I even understood what the word meant, but Kara was just looking for a place to be safe, to be true to her cause and stay the course. All those Captain America end of the line references. All of it. But she was forced otherwise, she_ did _have everything taken from her. Her face can be short circuited - who deserves to live like that?_

_I don't know where the road goes after this, but I do know one thing - a little boy in a well would want me to help her. He would._


	5. S.O.S. Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Part 1 of S.O.S. The war within and without...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A.N.: I am so sorry for the delay posting this. As you can imagine, the finale was tough! But I've figured out where I think we're heading, and it's helped me shape this. I hope you enjoy. Just remember - I will always stand with Ward.

 

_There was no contingency plan for this. There was no failsafe, no fallback. I may not have thought about what happens after, but I never dreamed we wouldn't actually finish this. Damn them all..._

_Kara…_

Grant hugged her tightly to his chest.  _I'm so sorry, baby. I'm so sorry..._ He stood and looked around, taking the radio from Kara's belt.  _This reeks of May. She'll be coming_. He leaned down to kiss Kara one more time.  _I'll get our closure, baby. I will._

* * *

_**Earlier...** _

Skye ran to her mother's side in the center of the courtyard. "Mom! What happened?"

"Gonzales...he...he said that we were...that Inhumans should be exterminated," Jiaying managed on a groan. "He had a gun."

_He what?_  Skye looked around for Gonzalez, for SHIELD.  _It should have been Coulson, I knew it..._ She moved to stand.

Jiaying reached out. "No, stay with me, please. Gordon will take care of him." Her mother winced as she turned to Lincoln. "Get everyone to safety."

"Everyone, this way!" Lincoln started waving people out of the courtyard.

Simmons looked from Skye to Jiaying. "Let me take a look at that," she offered.

"SHIELD's done enough," Jiaying bit out.

Skye looked at Simmons. _This...it just seems wrong..._

Jiaying continued. "We have our own doctors. I'll be fine in time. Right now we have more pressing concerns."

_Like war._  Skye looked up at Jemma. "You should get out of here."  _You_  need  _to get out of here._

"What about you?" Simmons asked.

Skye looked at her mother and back at her friend.  _I can't..._

Simmons read Skye's expression and turned to the two agents with her. "Come on," she murmured, running out of the square.

_I'm sorry, guys...I'm sorry..._ Skye tried to ignore the feeling as her heart split in two again.

* * *

"Have you had any contact with Bobbi?" May asked Coulson, Hunter and Fitz. "Her Quinjet still hasn't arrived, and she's not answering communications."

Coulson and Fitz both turned to Hunter, who looked up and around before leaving the room.

"How's Skye?" Coulson asked in return.

"Disappointed that you aren't the one meeting with her mother," May replied.

Simmons charged onto the plane and in front of the screen. "Agent May. Sir, there's been gunfire. Skye's mother's been shot, allegedly by Gonzales. I'm afraid it's going to get worse."

"What about Gonzales? Where's he?" May queried.

Simmons sighed heavily. "I don't know."

"Got what he always wanted," Fitz offered.

"No. He wouldn't do that. It has to be something else." Coulson shook his head. "Find Gonzales. Get everyone out. I don't want to escalate the situation till we find out what we're dealing with."

May nodded and moved to comply. "Have all three birds ready to fly the second I return." She pointed at Cal as she passed. "He may be a part of it. Make sure he's secured."

* * *

Grant checked Morse's restraints before getting into the pilot's seat. "After all that, I should let you fly us the rest of the way, you've earned it."  _Now to complete our mission and make you whole._

Kara smiled. "Thank you, Grant." She reached over to take his hand. "For all of this. For saving me."

He shook his head, tugging her hand up to kiss it. "You saved yourself, baby. Don't give me more credit than I'm due."  _Besides,_ you _saved_ me...

She glanced behind them at Bobbi. "I can't wait to give her what  _she's_ due."

Ward followed her gaze. "I know, baby. I understand."  _I understand more than you could ever guess. Multiple times over._  "And you will, very soon." He quirked a brow. "Ready to go?"

Kara nodded. "More than ready. I want to put this behind us, so we can move on."

"Closure," he affirmed.  _And then I can leave them behind for good._ "That's the mission. Almost there."

* * *

Lincoln doubled back to Skye and Jiaying. "We need to get you to the doctors," he murmured.

_And I need for the world to make sense again..._ Skyeglanced up at him and around at the chaos.

"Okay," Jiaying conceded, groaning as Skye and Lincoln helped her to her feet.

Engines roared and Skye looked up.  _Raina saw Quinjets raining fire..._ "Come on! Help me," Skye urged. She looked up again as she heard the familiar high pitched whine of the guns charging. She ducked as the jet's weapons engaged, debris raining around them as people shouted in the distance. A rocket struck behind them, knocking all three of them off their feet.

Skye pushed up slightly to look around.  _What is going on...Why is this happening?_

Jiaying exhaled sharply as Lincoln helped her up, eyes filled with hurt as she gazed at Skye. "Why would you let them do this to us? I thought you were on our side."

_Let them? This isn't my fault!_ Skye gave her mother an incredulous look.  _How can you think that?_ "I am. I-I had no idea, I swear."

"Jiaying, I'm here." The same redhead who was keeping watch over Raina approached them.

"We've got to get you out of here," Lincoln insisted.

Skye turned to follow, stopping as an Inhuman behind her went down. She spun to see a SHIELD agent, gun in hand. Skye flung out a hand, vibrating his gun apart.  _You're not my team, you ruined everything._  She stalked over and engaged him, exchanging blows and knocking him out.

"Skye, stop!" May called out, running into view.

_Finally, someone with answers._ Skye grimaced at her former mentor. "What have you done?"

May held out a hand. "That's what we're trying to figure out, but you need to stand down."

"Stand down?" Skye questioned angrily. "After Gonzales just shot my mom and declared war on us?"  _You can't be serious._  " _You're_  the one who needs to stand down."  _You all do. I can't believe they all warned me this would happen..._

"I need to see Gonzales," May continued. "Where is he? We can fix this."

_You don't know what's begun..._ Skye shook her head. "It's too late to fix this. Now take your men and get the  _hell_  out of here."

"Not until I see Gonzales," May insisted. She started past Skye.

_No. No more_. Skye grabbed her mentor's arm, taking a fighting stance. She attacked, May shrugging her off.

May got her in a sleeper hold. "I don't want to hurt you!"

Skye grappled back.  _You forget who you're dealing with now…_ "You won't," she grunted.

The two exchanged blows, May sweeping Skye's legs out from under her. "Stop wasting time, Skye, help me fix this," she warned.

_I_ am _wasting time..._ Skye stood and held up a hand. "I'm sorry, May, you're not welcome here." She sent a wave of force towards May, knocking her back and out.

* * *

Coulson sighed and addressed the screen. "Jemma, do we have confirmation on who actually fired the missile?"

Simmons shook her head. "No, sir, we're still sorting out what happened with that Quinjet. Our priority was to get all SHIELD personnel out safely."

Coulson turned to Agent Weaver on the other half of the monitor. "Was there any resistance to that from the locals?"

Weaver pursed her lips. "No, they seemed as keen on leaving as we were - perhaps retreating to shelters or bunkers."

"Or they evacuated," Coulson suggested. "We know they have a powered way out. May."

"Where's Skye?" May demanded.

"How are you feeling?" Simmons asked, alarmed by the bruising on her face.

May responded flatly. "I have a headache, and I asked a question."

"None of this would have happened if Gonzales hadn't attacked," Jemma erupted.

"You can't actually believe he would do something like this," Weaver protested.

"Oh, no, Gonzales would never attack a base unprovoked," Simmons snapped back.

"Robert did not do this!" Weaver insisted.

"How can you be sure?" May asked.

"Because he went to great lengths for me to get a gift for Jiaying, a peace offering," Weaver returned.

"I agree," Coulson offered. "Gonzales was smarter than this. It's too sloppy."

Weaver squared her shoulders. "I recommend we respond with a strong show of force."

Coulson shook his head. "I have no intention of starting a war before I understand the situation." He moved towards the screen, addressing Weaver directly. "Agent Weaver, you're now the highest-ranking officer on the carrier. I want you to head back there and await further instructions."

"Yes, sir," Weaver acknowledged.

Coulson shut the link to Weaver and focused on his team. "I don't believe that Skye would turn against us."

"You didn't see her  _fight_  me," May intoned darkly.

"Her mother had just been shot," the director countered. "I can believe she's confused."

"No more than the rest of us," Simmons commented. "Why invite SHIELD only to attack?"

"I don't know," Coulson conceded, "but maybe their peace offering over there does."

Cal sang softly to himself and smiled.

* * *

_So close now, closure. I was shocked when Bakshi told us about Morse, about giving up the safehouse. I didn't think she was that kind of agent, that ruthless. Knowing now she was running on Gonzalez's orders, it makes sense. That's the difference between Coulson and the rest - Coulson sees people first, not agents. He never would have authorized giving up a safe house unless he knew it was clear. Gonzalez and Bobbi had no such qualms, and Kara paid the price._

_So now, we collect. With interest._

* * *

Jiaying groaned, panting heavily as the doctor extracted the bullets.

Skye shook her head.  _This isn't...I didn't know…_ "I thought that with her healing powers, the pain…"

"Wouldn't be there?" Lincoln supplied. "No such luck. Her gift can heal the tissue damage with time, but she feels all of it."

_So did I..._ Skye looked on, her chest tight.  _What can I do?_ She moved towards the doctor. "Does she need any blood? I can - I-I can donate or - or what -"

"I think you've helped enough," Lincoln spat.

Skye whirled on him.  _Are you kidding me right now?_  "What is that supposed to mean?" Skye shot back.  _Don't even tell me you think -_

"It means Jiaying was right - SHIELD couldn't be trusted," Lincoln replied. "But you convinced her otherwise.  _Why?"_

_You do. You son of a -_ Skye let the disbelief show on her face. "You think I knew about any of this?"

"Lincoln. Skye," her mother managed.

Skye turned towards her. "I never meant for this to happen - I swear," she protested.  _Why do you all think the worst of me?_

"I should have been more careful," Jiaying sighed. "SHIELD has done this before. I hoped they had changed," she said mournfully. She turned her attention to the other part of the argument. "Skye feels as betrayed as we do, Lincoln - maybe more."

_Is that what you feel, Skye?_ her first mentor's voice whispered.  _Does this feel right to you?_ Skye bit her lip. "I don't think we know the full story. Coulson wouldn't do any -"

"I can't do this right now," Jiaying interjected. "I'd like everyone to leave. I need rest if I'm going to heal." She lowered her head and took a sharp breath.

* * *

Skye stalked into Raina's room. "You knew, didn't you?" she asked. "Your visions - you saw fire, destruction. You knew it would all fall apart."

Raina inclined her head. "I'm afraid so." She took up her pruning shears and examined her plants. "Everyone thinks flowers are so delicate. They really are quite resilient."

"I'm not here to talk botany," Skye spat.  _Quit playing with me, Raina._

"No, you're here to ask questions about what's gonna happen next," Raina returned calmly.

"Yes," Skye confirmed.  _Why else would I bother with you?_

Raina sighed. "Well, that's the tragedy, because even if I were inclined to tell you, you wouldn't believe me, not with our history."

"Forget history - I don't care about the past," Skye protested.  _Not anymore._ "Just -"

"Well, you  _should_ , because the past and the future are intertwined, just like us," Raina retorted. "Our paths have been intertwined since before we even met, and I'm not talking about DNA. You and I have spent our entire lives searching for our destiny, and I finally have the answer. I had a vision today, and it revealed the truth. I've seen it."

"Tell me," Skye demanded.

"You wouldn't believe me," Raina replied.

_Oh, come on._  Skye gave her a look. "Raina."  _Enough._

"It is the thorn that protects the rose," Raina said softly. She chuckled. "Or, in this case, the Daisy."

_What the hell does that mean?_  Skye waved her off. "Please, stop with the metaphors."

"It's  _not_  a metaphor," Raina emphasized. She gave a short laugh. "That's the irony. My true purpose, my... _destiny_  is to help you become...what you're supposed to be."

Skye rolled her eyes.  _Sure, of course. Make yourself necessary to me to protect yourself. Good strategy._  "Why the hell did I even come here?"

"Because you want answers. You're just not willing to hear them." Raina watched Skye move towards the door again. "In fact, we'll never speak to each other again. But...you'll see. Your mother isn't leading our people," Raina insisted, "she's  _mis_ leading them. It's  _you_  who are destined to lead."

Skye scoffed.  _I just got here, I know nothing about leading anything._

"Even in the darkness, you'll see the truth," Raina said softly as Skye walked away.

* * *

"This should work perfectly." Ward hoisted Morse off his shoulder, dumping her into the chair. "You really did good, baby."

Kara smiled. "I couldn't have done it without you, Grant. I wouldn't know how to get closure." She stroked a hand over his chest. "I'd be lost."

Grant kissed her softly. "So would I."  _I'd have nothing to do but think, and that's not a good thing at all._ "Let's get started."

* * *

Coulson watched as the team approached with their new guest. He plucked the headphones from Cal's ears. "You want to tell me what you're really doing here?" he asked.

Cal grinned. "Sure. I'm a present, a gift horse - a peace offering from my family. I'm also an excellent Shanghai rummy partner." He chuckled as Coulson put the headphones right back on him.

Simmons waited until Cal was out of earshot to continue her report. "Sir, I'm worried he's more of a trojan horse. I believe Cal took these before he was handed over to us." She held up the three vials. "I'm going to analyze them in the lab."

"Go," the director confirmed. He turned to May. "Have we lost Skye?"

May's mouth was drawn tight as she replied. "We didn't lose Skye. She  _chose_."

* * *

Kara stalked into the room as Bobbi started to struggle in the cuffs. "You know why you're here, but I want to hear you say it."

"Sure," Bobbi said agreeably. "I'm here because you're a twisted psychopath, and once -"

Kara backhanded her. "Wrong answer."

Grant followed. "Shouldn't waste your energy, baby. We'll stay here as long as it takes. We'll get her to admit what she did to you." He wheeled the cart over towards Bobbi and took a seat, sighing. "Sunil Bakshi gave up some surprising information when we were finding closure with him. He said that you  _knowingly_ handed Agent Kara Palamas over to HYDRA, that you are the reason she suffered months of torture and mind control at the hands of her enemy."  _And I fully believe that you did._  "You are here to confess that truth, to give Kara the closure she needs to move on - to heal, the way I've healed."

Morse smirked. "Good luck with that."

Grant smiled to himself. "It's not luck that's gonna help us." He cleared his throat.  _Luck works too slowly. My life is proof of that._ "Kara tells me you don't like needles."

* * *

Skye walked into her mother's room, jaw dropping at what she saw. "How are you even up?"  _You were just shot,_ twice _._

"A skilled doctor, the generosity of others," her mother offered. She poured a cup of tea. "Honestly, having you here is the best medicine I could hope for."

Skye eyed her.  _Just that easy?_ "Okay, but I've been shot before, a-and this i-is..."

Jiaying merely inclined her head. "Inhuman? What's wrong?"

_What_ isn't _wrong?_ Skye rolled her eyes. "Everything. SHIELD attacking, you getting shot, me fighting May, the threat of more people dying - this is way up there on one of the worst days ever." She blew out a breath. " _And_ I talked to Raina. She warned that bad things are gonna happen. I was hoping she'd have answers."  _I don't know why I thought she would..._

Her mother looked at her skeptically. "Thought you didn't trust her."

"I don't, and I shouldn't have gone," Skye muttered. "She's full of lies, and she'll never change."  _Fine, she's full of lies, but do you really believe Gonzalez shot first?_ whispered in her head.

Jiaying gave her daughter a look. "We have more pressing work - the safety of our people."

"How?" Skye questioned. "SHIELD can find us anywhere."  _Forget about us, they'd definitely come looking for_  me...

"Which is why we have to stop hiding and fight," Jiaying declared.

_Wait, what?_  Skye looked at her mother. "You want to take the battle to SHIELD?"

"You've seen more clearly than anyone how they treat people who are different, who have gifts," her mother explained.

_And I've seen them try to help_...Skye frowned. "I know, but to -"

"If our people are ever going to be safe, I need you standing by my side," Jiaying interrupted. "I know it's a lot to ask, and there's little time." She pressed the charm Gonzalez had brought into Skye's hand. "Bring this back to me if you decide to join our fight."

* * *

"Skye's mother orchestrated the whole thing," Coulson declared. He shut off the video. "It was a performance. The Quinjet they stole only fired on the one building. Nobody got hurt."

"Except Commander Gonzales," Simmons remarked. "It either killed him or destroyed any evidence of foul play against him."

"If it's theater, it worked," May said grimly. "Every Inhuman up there believes that SHIELD attacked their leader and declared war."

"Including Skye," Simmons pointed out.

"Then mark that down as the second time SHIELD got played today," Hunter interrupted.

"Figured out what happened to Agent Morse," Fitz explained. "She left on a Quinjet with - you," he continued, pointing to May. He pulled up the security footage he and Hunter had found.

"I didn't leave with Bobbi," May protested. "That's -"

"Agent 33," Coulson finished.

Fitz supplied the rest. "She killed her guard, stashed him under a blanket in Vault C, then boarded a Quinjet posing as May."

"But why?" Jemma questioned. "I don't understand."

Hunter continued. "The Quinjet's transponder went dark outside Aranda de Duero in Spain. I'm gonna need a pilot."

"With pleasure," May volunteered.

* * *

_The fine art of torture. It's one that Garrett taught me well. And among the first things he taught me about it was you had to seem like you were enjoying it. No matter how much your stomach turned, or how you may empathize with the person across from you._

_I bet everyone thinks that I take pleasure in this, that I'm so twisted I relish other people's pain. But I'm not looking to inflict pain blindly. That was my family's hallmark. No, I use pain as a tool and a weapon to accomplish things. Order. Justice. Closure. I'm trying to use what Garrett made of me to help myself, to help Kara._

_I know full well no one else will help us now._

* * *

Coulson stalked down the hall with the team May and Hunter selected. "This reeks of Ward. He left Agent 33 here for this very purpose."

"But why take Bob?" Hunter questioned. "Did she have a history with him?"

Coulson shrugged. "Not that I know of, but Ward's logic is rarely logical." He sighed. "There's a piece we don't understand yet."

"There's a piece that  _Ward_ doesn't understand," May interjected. "When I find him, I'm going to kill him," she continued with relish.

Hunter looked at her approvingly. "Glad we're on the same page."

* * *

Grant examined Bobbi's hand. "Any agent worth their salt adjusts to pain - can push it away. So I took a different approach - paralytic combined with an anesthetic. You can't fight what's happening, nor can you feel any of the pain... _yet_."  _It's like growing up in my family..._ He gave her a smile. "Crazy, huh? Now, in a little while, the drug will turn off. Everything you're not feeling will flood in at once."

"It's how I felt after the mind control was removed," Kara added. "I remembered every terrible thing they did to me."

"Now, we can avoid all that pain if you cooperate," Ward offered.  _Not that I mind the other way as much as I might want to_. "Admit your sins," he continued.  _Give Kara the closure she deserves._

"What happened to you was a tragedy," Bobbi gritted out.

"Not good enough," Kara said darkly.

"I had to make a choice when I was inside HYDRA - protect my cover by giving them a SHIELD safe house that  _might_  be occupied or blow my cover and lose intel that I knew for a fact would get two dozen SHIELD agents killed," Bobbi continued.

"So you  _did_  sell me out," Kara declared.

"I'm sorry you were in that safe house, but I did the right thing," Morse persisted. "The lives of the many outweigh the life of one. You - " She glared at Ward before turning back to Kara. "You swore to the same ideal when you signed to SHIELD."

"That's your apology?" Grant scoffed.  _You signed up to be sacrificed?_

"Oh. I'll go one better," Bobbi retorted. "If I ever apologize or beg for mercy while you torture me, know that I don't mean a word of it - not a word. I made a hard call. I'd make the same one again right now."

* * *

_If she didn't make me so angry I'd admire her. Or maybe I do, a little bit. It's easy to say the lives of the many over the few when you've spent your life knowing someone else would give the same for you. I didn't have that luxury, and Kara didn't either. No one came to free her, no one thought to help her. That SHIELD that Morse talked about was the vehicle of Kara's torment. It's easy to sacrifice someone you don't know._

_What about someone you do know? What about someone you love? What lengths would you go to spare them pain? Yes, we signed to SHIELD to protect people, but it's not an easy thing to know that your life is forfeit. It's more than a tragedy, and it's not a little white lie, to be quickly forgiven._

_And once Morse can say that, can see that, our work will be done._

* * *

Skye looked at the pendant in her hands.  _A charm to keep evil away. I could have used this..._ She sighed as she walked through the rubble.  _All of this, all this chaos, all this destruction...I still can't believe that's the SHIELD that I know. I've been through every bit of data in that system, and there's no records of anything like this - unprovoked attack, genocide...That's HYDRA, not SHIELD. And yet my mother..._

She sighed as she reached the spot where she and Jiaying had first explored her power.  _My mother. What do I do about my mother? She wants me on her side, but would she even believe it? The way that she and Lincoln have been looking at me, talking to me...She defended me when it was Lincoln, but her first response was to blame me. What does that say about her, about us? What am I supposed to do now?_

* * *

"How are you doing, baby?" Grant took Kara by the waist to pull her close. "You okay?"  _This is the hardest part, where we have to dig in._

Kara nodded, exhaling roughly. "She did admit she sold me out. That's step one."

Grant brushed her hair back. "She did. And we have all the time in the world for the rest."  _As much time as you need._

Kara glanced over, smirking. "It's happening," she confirmed, walking over to look in Morse's eyes. "She feels it." She crossed back to embrace him.

Grant rubbed his hands up and down her arms. "Once she understands your pain, we can all move past this unpleasantness."  _That's all it will be - remembered unpleasantness, with no power over you._

Bobbi struggled against the cuffs. "Don't you see what's happening? He's molding you - the way that Bakshi molded you. The circle never ends."

_I would never treat her like they did._  Grant scoffed. "You left her for dead. I'm helping her heal...from wounds  _you_  inflicted."  _And if I'm molding her, I'm molding her to be_ strong.

"Then take her to Hawaii," Bobbi countered. She turned back to Kara. "Do you think it'll end with me? There's always someone else to blame."

Grant stiffened in Kara's arms.  _Of course you'd think that of me. I'm just a psycho, a killer..._

"You're wrong," Kara declared.

"I bet he started you off easy - symbolic target - maybe the doctor who made your mask," Morse suggested.

Grant and Kara exchanged a look.  _Exactly what I warned Kara Morse would do - try to turn Kara against me, try to make her doubt..._

"Ward probably started off easy, too," Bobbi concluded.

"You're right," Kara admitted, rubbing a hand over his chest. "It was his dog."

Grant closed his eyes.  _I don't know if I'd call that easy at all..._

"Garrett made him kill his dog," Kara continued. "I know what you're doing, Agent Morse, and it's not going to work." Kara stalked towards Bobbi slowly, standing before her. "Grant's already told me everything - everything - about his abusive family, about John Garrett, about having to kill Victoria Hand."

He winced.  _Preparing might have helped Kara, but I didn't expect her to just lay it out like that._

"But in the end, he overcame his family and the pain Garrett put him through," Kara said firmly. "He remade himself. It's why I love him," she said softly, glancing over at him before turning back to Bobbi. "...and why no matter what he does, I will  _always_  stand with Ward."

* * *

_Where do I stand now?_ Skye passed the charm from hand to hand, walking back towards the village.  _I want to be a part of both worlds, but they are both forcing me to choose. It was so much easier when all I wanted to do was pull back the Wizard's curtain, but I am way down the rabbit hole now..._ She blew out a breath as she made her way along the path.  _Curiosity and all, right?_ She slowed as she heard voices ahead.  _Who would be out here?_

"There's only one thing that can save the Inhumans from death and destruction," Raina said softly. "And it is neither you nor I. It's Skye."

Jiaying scoffed.

Raina inclined her head. "I've considered killing her and you - running from my fate. But then, I realized..." She took a breath. "What my grandmother used to say - that one day, I would be an angel. And I realized her words have come true. I am not a monster," Raina declared, pushing back her hood. "I am an angel. I'm finally what I'm meant to be."

"I'm happy to hear you say that," Jiaying murmured darkly.

"Angels are guardians, Jiaying, but they're also heralds, sent to reveal the truth," Raina said.

Skye froze as Raina caught her eye.  _What is - what is going on here?_

"And that is my purpose. I'm here to show the Inhumans exactly what you are," Raina continued, looking to Skye again. "Even in the darkness, they will see the truth," Raina repeated.

_What was - why did she say that again?_ She froze and watched as her mother stabbed Raina in the throat.  _No...oh, please, no..._ She let the charm fall from her hand and stalked towards Jiaying. "What did you do?" Skye hissed. "How could you?"

"She threatened me," Jiaying protested. "You tried to warn me, but I didn't listen until it was almost too late."

_Liar._ Skye looked at her mother with fresh eyes. "She knew I would see this. She said as much," she realized out loud. "She saw who you really are, so you killed her."

"Everything I've done, everything I will do is for the protection of our people," Jiaying insisted.

"You killed Gonzalez," Skye said, exhaling sharply.  _That's why this all feels wrong..._  "You want a war."

"War was inevitable," her mother scoffed. "I struck first so we would have the advantage."

"He came to make peace!" Skye cried incredulously.  _Here I thought it was Coulson, but if it had been, he'd be the one dead..._

"Peace? I built this community in the middle of nowhere so we would be left in peace," Jiaying laughed bitterly. "Yet, SHIELD found us. No matter where we go or what we do, they will hunt us down. If we are to survive, SHIELD must be destroyed."

"What are you planning?" Skye asked quietly.

"I am planning for our future -  _your_ future," Jiaying insisted. "Daisy, I won't live forever, and when I'm gone, you must lead these people - protect them as I have done."

"Protect them?" Skye repeated. "You  _killed_ Raina. You are leading them into a war!" She shook her head. "If they need protection, it is from you!"

"I'm sorry you feel that way," her mother sighed.

Skye opened her mouth to protest, the blow to the back of her head taking her by surprise.

* * *

"Why won't she apologize," Kara gritted out. "Why? Am I so unworthy? Is my life so expendable?" She inhaled shakily, tears shining in her eyes.

"Not to me, baby," Grant said softly. "Not to me." He kissed her, hugging her tightly. "You're tired, it's all right. Go, rest. I can handle this."

"The things she said about you, Grant..." She shook her head. "I know you told me she would but...they really don't - no one can see. Why can't they see?"

He laughed bitterly. "Oh, baby." He kissed her again. "Thank you, for caring. They don't. They can't. They don't want to. And that..." He sighed. "That's on me. I'll have to carry that. But you..." He brushed her tears from her eyes. "Baby, knowing you see me, you love me, even with all my skeletons, all the things I've done..." He shook his head.  _You're the only one, ever._  "It means more to me than you could ever know."

Kara kissed him, cupping his face in her hands. "I do, you know. I love you, and I will always stand with you."

Grant caught her hands in his, kissing her palms. "Thank you. Now let me take care of this tonight, all right? Get some sleep."

Kara nodded, hugging him tightly before leaving him for their makeshift bedroom.

* * *

_Kara...Seeing her like this, it's why this one is more personal than the rest of them. Bakshi could only be expected to be evil, it was in his nature. I'm sure the team would say just like mine, right? My nature is dark and evil and twisted and incapable of love or a thirst for justice._

_But then I see Kara suffering and I think to hell with what they believe._

_Maybe I can't save me, but I'm going to try like hell to save her._

* * *

Grant walked back in alone, brandishing a thermos of coffee. "Gonna be a long night," he explained, watching Morse squirming in the chair in front of him. "I knew you'd be tough."  _I'm glad for it. Challenge me, damn it._  "Coulson's got a good eye for talent, though he's a little blind when it comes to spies in his own house."  _They just keep multiplying..._ "You know, you and I are a lot alike, both of us living one life on the outside. But who we  _really_ are - we keep that buried deep inside...where no one can ever find it."  _Not even us..._ He sighed as he put down the coffee cup. "That's why Coulson never saw us coming," he concluded. He leaned in. "That's why you never saw me coming."

"Where's Kara?" Bobbi questioned.

"Sleeping."  _Pacing. Hurting._  He let his anger show in a dangerous look. "Oh, but don't worry - I can go all night."  _As long as it takes for her..._ He waved the next needle at her. "I need you to help me help her," he demanded. "Kara needs closure. Admit that you betrayed her, and we can end this."

"You're such a hypocrite," she mocked. "You say I betrayed her? You betrayed your entire team. How many people who trusted you have died?"

_You think I don't know that?_ He took a breath to keep the words from bursting out.  _She's just pushing my buttons. I know how this goes..._

"See, I've seen the real Grant Ward, the one buried deep inside," Bobbi continued. "He's a coward who always has an excuse or someone else to blame."

He pressed his palms on the table, leaning closer to her.  _That's what Garrett made me._ "You don't know me," he hissed.  _You don't know anything about me. None of you do anymore._

"Sure, I do." She ripped free of the cuffs, slamming his head into the table. She grabbed the needles from under her nails to stab Ward in the neck.

_Damn it._ Grant let out a grunt of pain, yanking the pins out.  _Thank god we were using thin needles._ He took a fighting stance, sparring with her through and then out of the room.  _Still not getting away though._ They fought their way through the hall.  _How the hell does she always find something to swing from?_

Kara burst into the hall, firing.

_That's my girl._ Grant took advantage of the momentary diversion to kick Bobbi down the hall. Morse fought them both until Ward managed to grab her, tossing her to the floor. He kicked her knee viciously as she lay on the ground.  _Kara's life, her happiness, is worth both yours and mine. I won't let you ruin her chance to be free._ He stood, panting, over Morse. "Now...is there anything you'd like to say to Kara?"

"Yeah," Bobbi managed. "I'd do it all again."

_Of course that's what you'd say. Stupid, pointless resistance, when you know deep down you've made a horrible mistake._ He handed Kara the gun.

Kara cocked it and walked over, pointing it straight at Bobbi's face as the agent stared her down. Kara frowned and looked to Grant. "This isn't right." She exhaled heavily. "I'm not feeling it. She doesn't care if she dies, and...she's not sorry."

_You're right about that. But I'll make it that way._ Grant nodded slowly. "It's okay, baby. I know what to do."

* * *

_She doesn't care if she dies and she's not sorry. I remember what that was like. To feel so disconnected from everything that happened, and not just while on mission. Life wasn't something to be lived. It was something that happened around me, something that happened to me, in between missions. When the mission turned out to be Garrett's insanity, when there was no one telling me the next move...Kara wasn't the only one lost. Without Garrett, I had only one purpose, only one mission. There was only one thing that woke me up, that shook me and made me think about who I had been, who I was deep down. Only one._

_If Morse is anything like I think, she has the same pressure point. She'll get to feel like I did, watching blood pooling on the cold concrete._

_It's fitting, poetic, that I end my time with SHIELD like this._

* * *

Skye fought back a groan at the pain in her head, concentrating on her breathing and the sounds around her.  _We're on...the boat. The boots don't sound like the base. Echoey. What happened?_ She winced as she was bounced around.  _And who the hell is carrying me?_

On cue, Lincoln raised a protest. "Careful with her. She's unconscious, not dead."

Gordon scoffed. "Just lock her up. We have to move fast."

_How could I have ever believed in them? Over Coulson, over SHIELD?_ She carefully cracked an eye open to see unfamiliar silver cuffs on her arms.  _I'm going to have to figure out how to get on the right side of this one...And probably fast._

* * *

Morse's cellphone vibrated on the table. Grant snatched it up with a smirk.  _Finally._  "That was fast," he remarked. "Someone must really miss their honey bunny." He tossed the phone aside. "You think he'll come for you, hmm?"  _Good. We're counting on it._ He stood.

"Since you've shown no remorse for your sins against Kara, since you clearly have no regard for your own life...we're leaving you a little present." He checked the scope and clicked the safety off the rifle he'd set up. "First person through this door..." He pantomimed an explosion. "...brains everywhere."  _And that bright, vivid red is something you can never unsee..._

Kara finished checking the restraints and stood. "I wonder what you'll feel when you watch somebody else die because of what you did."

_Your betrayal, your cowardice, because you had the audacity to_ want  _something for yourself after years of -_  Grant took a breath and smirked. "I know what we'll feel," he murmured as he gestured Kara out of the room and armed the motion sensor. " _Closure_." He shut the door firmly behind them.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To be continued...


	6. SOS Part 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I am not a mental health professional, and I don't endorse that Ward is properly labeled a sociopath, but I am using canon for this piece, wherein he is labeled as such.
> 
> A.N.: And hopefully what I do with canon shows I don't think he's the villain they portrayed him as.

 

Cal glared at Coulson over the hood of the SUV. "This won't hold me for long, Phil." He grunted and started to push back as Coulson shoved the ram into place.

"It'll hold you long enough," the director replied, hitting the remote to activate it. "The hangar's been emptied, locked down." Phil straightened his suit jacket. "It's just us, Cal, to have a little chat..."

Cal lunged at Phil. "When I get free, I will rip your voice box out of your throat!"

The director ducked out of reach. "...and try to come to our senses. Either we walk out of here together, or not at all. You got it? We both want the same thing."

"What I  _want_  is to snap your spine like celery," Cal growled.

Coulson shook his head. "See, I don't think you really do."

"Well, let's test your hypothesis," Cal hissed.

"Oh, I think you're  _willing_  to, but want is a different thing. What we  _both_ want is to protect your daughter." Coulson paused as Cal struggled against his barricade again. "You're a family man."

"Who is  _sick_ of you sticking your nose in our business," Skye's father ground out.

The director continued. "It was your devotion to them that made you willing to do those terrible things all those years ago, wasn't it?"

Cal clenched his jaw. "Shut up."

"Nightmarish acts of violence that you didn't want to commit, did you?" Coulson persisted. "Your wife made you do it."

Cal ripped the hood from the SUV and flung it in Coulson's direction. "You don't know her!" He grunted and lunged for Coulson's throat again. "You don't know anything! Say one more word, and I'll -"

"I'm not saying your wife is a monster, Cal." Coulson stood calmly as Cal pounded on the SUV. "I think you already  _know_ she's a monster. What I'm saying is...you're  _not_." He paused while Skye's father absorbed his statement. "I know you've thought so for a long time. But deep down, you're a  _good man_."

Cal scoffed at him, subsiding against the wall.

"I believe that. I do," Coulson insisted. "You've got a big heart full of love."

Cal dropped his head. "Stop."

"You wear it on your sleeve," the director persisted. "Skye got that from  _you_."

"No." Cal shook his head violently.

"That's right," the director continued.

"No, stop! Stop!" Cal covered his ears against Coulson's truths.

"You were just trying to save her, trying to please your wife," Phil supplied.

Cal growled, shaking his head. "No, I was trying to put my family back together!" He slammed his fists on the car with the last three words. Subsiding again, he took a deep breath and whispered to Phil. "I...I reassembled her...piece by piece...sewed her back up...but she was never the same."

"She was out for blood," Coulson murmured.

"Before Whitehall, an elder would sacrifice themselves every few decades so she could live on, carry on tradition," Cal explained. "She would weep, scream, beg them not to." He took a deep breath. "She had a good heart, Phil. She did. It was just...torn out," he whispered, heaving another sigh. "And she needs to take lives to heal."

Coulson gazed steadily at him as his theory was confirmed. "So you supplied them."

"Yes, a village of them," Cal agreed. "But it was never enough. She didn't care about human life anymore." He sighed. "Even I had to change myself to be worthy in her eyes. I thought I could fix her if I could just make good on my promise." His gaze on Coulson's pleaded for understanding. "I promised to protect our daughter."

"Does that include protecting your daughter from  _her?"_ the director asked quietly.

Cal growled.

"You know Skye now - her compassion," Coulson continued.

Cal grunted and struggled towards Phil again.

"Jiaying's out for blood, and there's no way in hell Skye will go along with that," Coulson said flatly. "Think about the danger that puts her in." He stood his ground as Cal let out a yell and shoved the SUV away. "She's not my daughter, but she's as close to family as I've got, and I will save her, no matter what the cost," he promised.

Cal growled and took Phil by the lapels, hoisting him off his feet. "Please...let me help you."

* * *

Skye struggled against the bars in the cell, rattling her cuffs against the metal. She glanced outside, seeing a guard at the door. "You want to lend me a hand getting these things off?" she called.  _That doesn't seem to be working..._ "Or a face?" she added darkly. She caught her breath as the window let her see that same guard getting knocked out.  _Get me out of here...whoever you are._ She watched anxiously as the door opened, then smiled. "Mack? Thank God. Who's with you?"

"Just you and me, tremors." He unlocked the cell. "Your people just took over the ship. About 100 or so prisoners. The rest are dead. Guess they're not as harmless as you say."

_My people. Who are my people now?_ "I swear, I never meant for any of this to happen," Skye responded.

"Well, we need to stop them," Mack interjected. "But if you're in here, I'm guessing you figured that out already."

_I wish I hadn't._ Skye pursed her lips. "It's my  _mother_. She's manipulating them," she explained. "Not all of these people are bad."

"They're using their powers to kill SHIELD agents, so I don't give a damn about intentions right now," the engineer replied. "I came here because I need your skills."

Skye frowned. "I can't use my powers. They locked these inhibitors on me."

"Not the skills I'm looking for," he countered. He unzipped his pack and pulled out a laptop. "Heard you have a history of hacking into SHIELD."

Skye looked at him with a small smile. "I do, yeah..."

Mack nodded. "Good. Get us the security feed for this boat."

She blew out a breath.  _Right_.  _Gather intel. Be a SHIELD agent, Skye._ She cracked her knuckles and set her fingers to the keys. "Who would've thought I'd still be hacking SHIELD from the inside?" she muttered.

He snorted a laugh. "There's a lot of 'who woulda thought' going on today."

Skye gave a tight smile as she worked her way through firewalls. "Yeah, there is. What happened to everyone?"

Mack frowned. "Best I can figure is your magic carpet ride decided to bring extra passengers. And they're not looking to take the tour."

Skye sighed as her fingers flew along the keys. "Yeah, that much I figured." She glanced at him. "Coulson?"

Mack shrugged. "Hoping someone got a signal out, but everything happened so fast I don't know."

Skye grimaced. "Well, I'll tackle that next. Here's our first hurdle." She spun the screen so he could see. "Command Deck. Not looking great."

Mack swore softly as he saw Jiaying pacing around prisoners. "This ain't gonna go well."

Skye shook her head. "No. It's not." She paused as Lincoln ran in.  _What's burning his ass?_

"We have a problem," Lincoln called out. "I disabled the communication systems, but an emergency beacon was sent out to Coulson's base. It's hard-wired, and there's no way to cancel it without the proper code."

Mack and Skye exchanged a look. "One thing down," the engineer muttered.

"Do one of you have the code?" Jiaying asked of her captives.

"I suggest you surrender peacefully," Weaver said haughtily. "When Coulson gets the message, he'll come at you with everything he has."

"Coulson's being dealt with," Jiaying dismissed.

_Dealt with?_  Skye frowned. _How would - Dad. Oh my God, no..._

"Expand the beacon. Invite them all," Jiaying ordered.

Lincoln looked at her incredulously. "You  _want_  them to know we're here?"

"We have to show them what we're capable of," she explained. "It's the only way they'll ever leave us alone."

"We don't know what you're planning, but we'll play no part in it," their captive declared.

Jiaying nodded to one of her guards to grab him and toss him into the control booth.

_"Hands off, you freak!"_

Skye winced.  _That choice of words doesn't help at all..._

"Let him go!" Weaver demanded.

"Do you like rare gems?" Jiaying said, holding a modified Terrigen crystal carefully.

Weaver gave her a condescending look. "You don't think you can bribe me."

"It's not a bribe. It's an  _incentive_." Jiaying passed the crystal to one of her men, who tossed it into the room and shut the door.

_No...please, tell me it's not - not that..._ Skye watched with horror as the Diviner metal turned them to stone.

"Expand the beacon, or there will be more," Jiaying assured Weaver.

Mack shook his head. "If we don't cut that beacon, it'll bring every available agent racing here."

"And she plans to do that to all of them," Skye confirmed.  _She probably used one on Gonzalez...what about Coulson?_

Mack frowned. "The problem is, it's hard-wired, clear on the other side of the ship, with a dozen ginger ninjas and god knows what standing in the way."

"But we're still gonna try," Skye declared.

Mack looked at her approvingly. " _Hell_  yeah."

* * *

_Closure._

_The word has been on my mind all day. It's so close I can taste it, feel it. Kara deserves this, deserves justice. It is justice, after what Morse did to her. She calls me a traitor, but I did follow a cause, a man. She just sacrificed an agent, didn't once try to stop it when she saw what Kara was going through. Kara didn't break easily, and no rescue came._

_So no rescue today._

_Closure._

* * *

Ward sighed as he watched their surveillance footage. "There he is, poor sap ... not a clue what he's walking into."  _I know how that feels..._

Kara pursed her lips. "I didn't think May would be with him. She could screw the whole thing up for us."

"Well, we'll make sure Hunter and Bobbi get their reunion - by taking the rest out one by one," Grant assured her. "Don't worry about May. I'll take care of her. I owe her that."

* * *

_I do. I know I do. I'm taking their labels, I'm taking their rage, I'm accepting it as real, whether I agree with it or not. I owe May for betraying her trust, for betraying our team. I've known that. And now we can clear that slate, and finish that fight._

_Closure. Like I said._

* * *

Skye and Mack took the passageways carefully, watching for any movement.

"This is crazy," Skye muttered.  _And that's saying a lot at this point._

Mack scoffed. "Crazy is the normal state of being around here, why do you think I'm trying to get out?"

Skye eyed him. "You're leaving SHIELD?"

He rolled his eyes in return. "Damn near had when the sirens started going. Gotta say, seeing Weaver and Coulson debating whether to blow everything up gives me a newfound respect for that man."

"Weaver wanted to  _blow us up?"_ Skye spat.  _I knew I didn't trust her._

"I think she called it a 'strong show of force' or something antiseptic like that," Mack countered. "But yeah, that was pretty much what I took from it."

"But now that  _she's_ the one being threatened, she's not exactly pulling the self-destruct, is she," Skye muttered.

Mack shrugged. "Don't look at me, I'm just here 'cause I was too slow to get out of your mama's way."

_Once upon a time, all I wanted was to be with her._ Skye barked a laugh. "You and me both."

* * *

_Watching Kara get closer to closure makes me think about my own. My family has been dealt with, Garrett is long gone, and SHIELD...well, I know what they think of me now. No one is willing to believe I could be anything other than their sociopath, their rabid dog. I can take it, I can carry that weight, knowing that at least Skye is all right, or better than all right, if that display was any indication. She's strong now, independent and still as wickedly sarcastic as -_

_But she's May's protege now, I'm sure they say she finally has a real SO. I just hope they haven't turned her into the drone they tried to make me. I hope that spark of hers survives the life she's chosen now._

_That's one bit of closure I'm never going to get - Skye. She made her decision, she painted me with the same brush. Maybe she even told Simmons to go ahead. But if there's one thing I know about betrayal, it's that the pain forges a core of steel in people like us._

_Tempered by fire. May she be the stronger for it._

* * *

The SHIELD agent lowered his gun, cautiously approaching the long-haired woman with her back to him. "Agent May?"

"Not really," Kara replied as she turned, knocking him down the stairs and snatching his radio. She ducked away as May and another agent fired down the hall.

May watched as Kara disappeared. "Agent Walker took the South corner, right? He still radio silent?" The agent next to her nodded. May took up the radio. "All agents converge on the South corner. I'll meet you there. Do not lower your guard until you see my face."

The agent with her frowned. "Hunter's the only agent left."

May gave a tight smile. " _She_  doesn't know that."

* * *

Skye held her breath as she peered around the next corner. "I don't understand how you're just walking around like nothing," she hissed.  _Have I lost my nerve already?_

Mack shrugged. "Because at this point, I'm pretty sure I know the search grid they're taking from the schematics I studied, and it's not the most efficient one, lucky for us." He nodded them to the next turn. "Besides, if I'm wrong? I'll fight 'em and you run your ass straight down that hall, at least you can get there faster."

Skye gave a light chuckle "I guess that's something, right?"  _Even a mental advantage is an advantage. Look at the damn silver lining, Skye._

He smirked. "Best I've got at the moment, yeah."

"Still better than the best  _I've_  got," she muttered. "It feels like someone is playing the steel drums in my skull."  _But at least it keeps me from thinking too much..._

* * *

_Taking too long again,_ Ward froze as his ear caught a footstep.  _May_. He left the room, the agent he'd taken out laying on the floor.  _Time to see who the better agent is, once and for all._ He pressed his gun to her rib cage, three shots perforating her diaphragm and lungs.  _You of all people should have understood me_...

May grunted and gasped, reaching for him. "Baby..."

_Baby?_ Grant froze as the word and the ease of his kill suddenly made sense _. Not May, not May, no_...He caught her as his heart broke. "No...Kara? No, no. Kara, no. Kara, look at me. Look at me!" She gasped desperately for air before her eyes went glassy and distant, the nanomask shutting down to reveal her natural scars. "No, no, no,  _no!_  No,  _Kara!_  Look at me, baby. Come on...It's...It's..."

_This isn't how it was supposed to end. Anything but this. There was no contingency plan for this. There was no failsafe, no fallback. I may not have thought about what happens after, but I never dreamed we wouldn't actually finish this. Damn them all..._

_Kara…_

Grant hugged her tightly to his chest.  _I'm so sorry, baby. I'm so sorry..._ He stood and looked around, taking the radio from Kara's belt.  _This reeks of May. She'll be coming_. He leaned down to kiss Kara one more time.  _I'll get our closure, baby. I will._

* * *

"She just killed them - all of them - didn't even think about it," Skye murmured.  _And that capacity is in me, too, to write people off like that, to shut them out_... _how far beyond that is killing them?_

"Yeah, I thought my mom was bad when she started watching Fox News," Mack replied.

"And I fell for the whole act," Skye said angrily.  _I was so desperate to be loved, to be part of a family..._

"Look, you had to choose between two -" Mack took Skye's arm. "This way. This way. You had to choose between two sides that both mean something. I get it. You make the best choice you can. Sometimes, it works out. Sometimes -"

"It didn't," Skye said flatly.

"It did not," Mack agreed emphatically. He pointed. "Beacon's in the sat room down to the left. Go get started. Try to hack the code and turn it off."

Skye frowned as he turned back down the hall. "Wait. Where are you going?"

"To find a power saw in case you  _can't_ ," he replied, and left her to her own devices.

_Awesome_. Skye checked to see if anyone was approaching and opened the door.

* * *

Ward took off down the hallway, listening on the radio for movement.  _If May sent Kara this way, she can't be far behind._ He stepped over an agent Kara had gotten to, stripping his vest and sidearm.  _I know better than to think getting out of here will be easy. Even alone..._ His chest tightened and he clenched his jaw.  _Not now._ He struggled to stifle his rage and grief, locking it down ruthlessly.  _Time to go._ He waited until the sentry rounded the corner and sprinted for his Quinjet. The agent on the ramp was taken down after a short scuffle, the other in the cockpit reinstalling the GPS tracker even easier to overcome. Grant tossed them and the stolen radio off of the ramp, gazing back towards the compound.  _I couldn't even take her with me.._.  _Kara...baby, I'm so sorry...this isn't how it was going to be..._ With one last venomous look at the other jet, he slammed his hand on the controls and shut the door behind him.

* * *

Skye picked the lock into the control room, skimming her hand along panels and scanning for the beacon.  _Come on, come on, where are you..._ She caught sight of a screen on the opposite side of the room, running for it.  _Let's see what we have..._

"How did you get out?" Lincoln's voice came from behind her.

She whirled. "Lincoln," she gasped. "I-I can explain."

"Don't bother," he spat, charging his hands and flinging arcs of electricity towards her.

Skye cried out as she hit the wall.  _I probably deserved that somehow..._ She panted for air. "You've got this wrong...very wrong. Listen, please -"

"I just found you trying to reach out to your SHIELD friends," he retorted. "You planning the next assault?"

Skye sat up, holding up her hands. "That attack didn't happen, Lincoln. Jiaying staged the whole thing. She murdered Gonzales, then shot herself to frame SHIELD so we'd follow her to war."

"Do you even hear how crazy that sounds? Shot herself?" Lincoln mocked.

"She's already healed, hasn't she?" Skye pointed out. "I'd tell you to ask Raina - she can see the future - but she's not  _here_ , is she?" Skye grunted and stood. "She's not here because she had a vision of what happened, what's going to happen. And Jiaying couldn't risk her talking, so she cut her throat."

"Why are you doing this - trying to turn us against her?" Lincoln demanded.

"You saw what she did with those crystals - killed  _unarmed agents_."  _Come on, Lincoln, you can't be this blind..._ Skye stifled a scream of frustration."Okay,  _think_. Why would she want the rest of SHIELD to come here? It's - it's not to hug it out. She wants to  _execute_ them."

Lincoln sighed.

_Thank goodness._  Skye pressed the advantage. "We can stop this. Please, just tell me where she took the crystals."

Lincoln exhaled heavily. "The fan room...where the ship's air circu-" His reply cut off abruptly, a heavy thud the only warning as he sank to the ground.

"Found a saw," Mack remarked, examining the butt of the impromptu weapon.

"I was getting through to him," Skye protested.

"Right now, I'm in a 'crack heads first, ask questions later' frame of mind," Mack dismissed. "Here." He passed her the saw. "Hack that beacon or just cut it. I'm gonna make sure those crystals don't hurt anyone else."

Skye paused. "Mack, you know what happens if one breaks near a vent, near you."  _Near Trip..._

"That's why they won't," Mack replied evenly, leaving Skye behind.

* * *

Grant fought the fire and rage burning through him, setting a course for his safe house.  _Not now, can't now, can't afford to lose control._ His fingers itched to change course, to head back to the compound and blow it from the face of the Earth.  _That won't bring me back,_ her voice whispered.

_Kara...I'm so sorry._

* * *

May frowned at Coulson. "I'd like to formally voice my doubts about bringing him on this mission."

"I understand your concerns, May, but Cal's lived with the Inhumans. He knows what we're getting ourselves into. We do not," Coulson reminded her.

"He's a loose cannon," May challenged.

The director looked behind them and lowered his voice as he responded. "Worse comes to worst, we let the cannon loose. Any distraction might help us take that boat." He sighed. "Look, Cal's erratic, but if there's one constant, it's his concern for Skye."

"Sir, something's happening with the S.O.S. signal from the boat," Fitz interrupted. "I thought it was breaking up, like someone cutting the line."

"Radio interference?" Coulson questioned.

"No, but there's, um, uh, a pattern to it, like a code," Fitz remarked.

"It's Skye," the director realized. "What's she saying?"

Fitz sighed. "That it's a trap."

Coulson took the radio. "This is SHIELD 218 ordering all other forces to fall back. Repeat. Fall back."

"And what about us?" May questioned.

"We're gonna finish this," Coulson confirmed.

* * *

_There was never a contingency plan for this. I'm a specialist, I'm supposed to think of every possibility, but this...I didn't ever contemplate this._

_She was never supposed to die..._

_And yet here I am, alone, no closure, no partner, nothing but my thoughts. My fickle, dangerous thoughts..._

_Order. I need to restore order to my universe. And order only comes from pain._

_I need names. I need someone to fight._

_I need someone to kill._

* * *

"We don't know the size of the force we're up against, but priority one is saving the crew of the ship," Coulson instructed his agents. "Find them. Free them. May, head to operations. Take control of the ship's functionality."

"Sir, um, Skye's last message came through," Fitz interjected. "It reads, 'modified crystals lethal - HVAC room'."

Coulson frowned. "Does she mean the Terrigen crystals that release the mist?"

"Yeah," Fitz confirmed. "But 'modified' and 'lethal'."

"And the HVAC room controls the ship's ventilation," May concluded.

"Ah! So that's what this little mutiny's all about," Cal remarked. "Gas them all. See what shakes loose."

"Not if I get to her first," the director countered.

"Oh, no, no. Not you, Phil," Cal corrected. "This is a family matter. My wife, my responsibility. You just find those crystals and leave her to me."

Coulson looked at May as he considered.

May scoffed. " _You_  brought him."

* * *

_This would never have happened if Coulson hadn't chosen me, if HYDRA had never existed. If Garrett had never been compromised, I would have been a model agent and nothing else. I would've been that Grant Ward from that dossier. I could have, anyway. But that wasn't my fate._

_And Kara...her choice was taken from her, beaten and tortured away. So for her, for closure, HYDRA needs to be gone. Finished. Order from chaos, through pain._

* * *

Jiaying turned to one of her redheads. "I want you to remain behind," she instructed as the trunk with the rest of the crystals was locked up. "Gather anyone who makes it through the mist alive."

"What are you doing with those?" Skye demanded, stalking into the control room.  _Just don't look into that booth._..

"What I've always done," her mother replied. "There are descendants everywhere. I'm going to find them and build them a better world, where they're not hunted, not afraid."

"And kill anyone in your way," Skye finished, shaking her head

" _Only_  if they're in our way," Jiaying clarified, looking steadily at Skye. "Goodbye, Daisy." She turned and walked away.

"No, wait!" Skye moved to follow as the aptly dubbed ginger ninja cloned herself into a team of five.

_I may not have my powers, but I have trained with two of the best._ Skye dropped into a fighting stance and waited for the attack.

* * *

"Hiya, honey," Cal greeted Jiaying from down the hall. "What you been up to?"

"You came back here...with  _them_?" Jiaying questioned.

"I know. I know what you're thinking," he replied. "But I've been thinking some thoughts of my own, like... maybe we both kind of lost our heads."

Jiaying stepped towards him. "Get out of the way, Cal."

"No. You need to stop this," her husband hissed. "This isn't about us or them. This is about our daughter. Think of what you are doing to Daisy."

"I'm trying to protect her from the cruelty of this world...like  _you_ swore to," Jiaying said sharply.

"I know. I failed you. I failed you both," he conceded. "But we can turn this around. It is not too late."

"For you...it is." Jiaying gestured to her guards.

"Where's Daisy?!" Cal yelled as Jiaying's minions locked him in a cell. "What did you do?! Where's Daisy?! Where's Daisy?!"

* * *

Ward landed the Quinjet in the barn near the safehouse.  _I may have missed some contingencies, but stashing a Quinjet is one we thought of. We._ He blew out a breath as he powered down and exited the jet.  _Damn it._  He moved to the window, picking up the plant he'd bought Kara what felt like ages ago. He stroked a fingertip over a leaf and threw it across the barn.

* * *

Skye used every bit of training she had to knock out the clones, but found herself outnumbered. She groaned as three of them stomped her into the floor.

"Hey!" Lincoln called out from the doorway, shooting electricity at the attackers to shock them unconscious.

Skye gasped for air as May held out a hand.  _May..._ She took it, gratefully getting to her feet as she gave her SO an apologetic look.

May granted Skye a small smirk. "My head still hurts," she conceded.

_That's as close to a compliment as I'm likely to get in this scenario..._ Skye bit her lip. "I'm sorry. I didn't know."

"You didn't know," May confirmed. "But now we have to stop Jiaying."

"Might help if we lose these," Lincoln offered, using his powers on Skye's inhibitors.

Skye struggled to catch her breath. "Hurry. There will be more redheads coming."  _Believe me I know._ She shook out her arms as the cuffs dropped away. "I'll go after her."

May shook her head. "Skye, I'll do it. I've done it before."

"No," Skye protested.

May frowned at her. "You have to be willing to -"

"I  _won't_ hesitate," Skye interrupted.  _Not anymore. Not after what I've seen._ She ignored Lincoln's gaze and focused on May's eyes. "Whatever it takes."

The three of them turned as the door opened, a redhead entering the room as expected.

"Go," May called out, moving to intercept as Skye took off in the other direction.

* * *

_Anything but alone._  Grant looked around the barn and swallowed a scream.  _Kara_...He shook himself.  _No. I won't lose myself again_. He looked around and saw the heavy bag he'd trained Kara on still hanging in the corner.  _I need something to hit. I need to get my head on straight. Order. Order through pain._

* * *

Skye burst onto the flight deck. "Mom! Stop! You can't do this!"  _Please, don't do this. Don't make_ me _do this._

Jiaying held back her guards from advancing on Skye, nodding towards the crate of crystals. "No, put them on the jet and get ready for takeoff."

"I can't let you leave with those crystals," Skye said quietly.  _If you force me to choose, I have to stand against you._

"You can," her mother protested, "and you  _should_. It's the only way to protect our people."

"It's not," Skye corrected. "There are other ways."  _Maybe I didn't always believe that myself, but I know that now._

"Whose ways? SHIELD?" Jiaying scoffed. "No. Their way is what  _got_ us here."

_"You_ started this war," Skye insisted.  _Can't you see that? Isn't it worth thinking about it for just a second?_

"This war started decades ago, when SHIELD was founded to guard the world against people like us," Jiaying insisted. "And it will  _never end_ ," she declared. "But you and I together...think of how powerful we could be," her mother suggested, stepping towards her. "We could launch a revolution...side by side."

Skye shook her head. "I don't want your revolution, because this isn't about protecting  _me_ or your people. This is about  _hate_."  _Maybe it started out differently, but now..._

"No, you're wrong," Jiaying denied.

"It's  _consumed_ you," Skye continued. "You can't even  _tell_ right from wrong. I can't let you destroy any more lives."  _Is this what I was like when I thought SHIELD was the demon with all the answers?_

"My daughter." Jiaying advanced to arm's reach of her daughter. "So beautiful," she whispered, stroking a hand down Skye's cheek. "So strong." Jiaying clasped Skye's neck in her hands and activated her powers.

Skye gasped as her life force was drained away. "Mom, what are you..." She struggled to breathe.

"I always believed the reason I endured all that torture and pain was for you, that you were my true gift," her mother said softly. "But you're not.  _This_ is," Jiaying declared, pulling more from her daughter.

"Don't...do this," Skye managed breathlessly.

"You made your choice," her mother persisted. "I'm sorry."

_You made yours too._ Skye struggled to summon her powers, clenching her fist and sending vibrations towards the Quinjet on the runway.

"No!" Jiaying released Skye, running towards the jet.

_I can't let you have those crystals, I can't let you kill anyone else..._ Skye shoved the jet over the side and into the ocean.

Jiaying turned back to Skye, grabbing her by the face, this time with rage in her eyes.

Skye managed to get her hand on Jiaying's shoulder, sending her own shockwaves through her mother.  _I won't let you hurt anyone else..._

"Please, stop," Cal's voice came from behind them.

Skye struggled to look at her father.

Cal stepped towards them, looking at Jiaying. "You don't have to do this," he insisted. He looked to his daughter, placing his hand carefully on Jiaying's neck. "You don't have to live with that pain," he assured Skye.  _"I_  will." He flicked his wrist and Skye heard an ominous crack as she was flung to the flight deck.

Jiaying struggled for breath. "Oh...Cal...what are you doing?" she gasped.

Cal cupped her head gently. "Keeping my promise," he replied. He wrapped his arms around his wife and squeezed with superhuman strength, holding her as she took her last breath.

Skye watched her father weeping as he sank to the floor with her mother's body still in his arms. _All I ever wanted was to know my parents...And this is the price._ She lowered her head to the concrete and cried.

* * *

_Order through pain._ Grant kept punching the heavy bag, ignoring his bleeding knuckles.  _I need someone to hit me back..._ He kicked the bag hard and leaned in for the ricochet.  _Pain. Order. It's all I have left._ He let out a grunt when the bag hit him, something loosening inside him at the feeling. He threw another combo and waited for the rebound to hit him again.

* * *

"Skye?" May ran onto the deck, gun drawn. "Skye?" She froze as she saw the three of them, Cal still cradling Jiaying's broken body while Skye cried her eyes out beside them. She holstered her weapon and ran to take Skye into her arms. "Skye. Are you all right."

Skye sank into May's embrace. "No," she whispered. "No, I'm not, and I don't know how I will ever be okay again," she managed.

May hugged her tightly. "Time," she murmured. "We're all going to need some time." She urged Skye to her feet. "Can you walk?"

Cal spoke up from his seat on the floor. "Jiaying's powers. She can -  _could -_  she  _could_  drain the lifeforce from other living things to heal herself," he murmured. "Daisy will need electrolytes and protein as quickly as she can get it. Maybe an IV would be best."

May blinked at Skye and forced an arm around her. "Skye. I can go get Simmons and -"

Skye shook her off, swallowing hard. "No. I - I want to get as far away from this place as fast as I can," she whispered.

May frowned and gave a short nod. "Cal. I - I'm sorry."

Cal laughed lightly. "The Butcher of Bahrain, apologizing to me. She would be so amused..." He stood, cradling Jiaying to him. "I need you both to let me do one thing."

Skye looked at her father and blew out a breath.  _Oh. Of course._ "May. Can you - can you give us a minute? And can you not mention -"

May looked between the two of them and sighed as she realized what they intended. "I can give you that much." She released Skye and gave Cal a stern look. "Five minutes or they'll wonder why I haven't brought you in yet."

Skye nodded gratefully. "Thank you, May." She turned to her father and gestured to the side of the carrier. "Do we need to do anything else?"

Cal stroked her mother's cheek and shook his head. "I made sure to sever the spinal cord, she wouldn't be able to move or activate her powers."

Skye swallowed hard. "Dad -"

Cal shook his head again. "No. No, Daisy, I didn't want you to carry this burden. I was the one who brought her back years ago, and she was never the same. I shouldn't have tried to play God, not like that. I just wanted her and you - our family - back, so badly." He pressed a kiss to Jiaying's lips and blew out a breath. "But she was gone. The woman I loved never came back."

Skye squeezed his shoulder. "That's not your fault, you know."

Cal looked down at her gratefully. "No, it's not." He chuckled. "I hate to say it, but it's that Coulson of yours who helped me see that. And he's the one who pointed out that keeping my promise to protect you might mean having to choose." He took a deep breath and let Jiaying's body fall out of his arms and into the waiting ocean. "But I know one thing for sure," Cal said softly. "I would make that same choice over and over again."

Skye let out a small sob and threw her arms around him. "Thank you," she whispered. "Thank you."

Cal kissed her temple. "I would never wish that pain for you, Daisy, never. You are the best of the both of us, flawed and misguided as we were. And I will treasure that, forever. I may have made every wrong decision, every wrong choice you could, but creating you, loving you - that will always be the right one."

* * *

_If I hadn't gone along with Garrett's schemes..._ Grant let out a flurry of punches, grunting as the bag hit him again.  _If I hadn't just waited for him in the woods..._ He kicked the bag hard, leaning in for the ricochet.  _I need something to fight, something to kill...Give me names, point me in their direction. I'm a specialist, and pain is why you bring me along. To inflict it, to prevent it, but always pain._

_Pain..._ Kara's face as she told him about being brainwashed by Bakshi, of the horror and the pain when she realized what she had done flashed in his mind's eye.

_Pain..._ Kara's anguish when she saw Morse wasn't going to apologize, much less beg for mercy was clear on her face.

_Pain..._ Kara gasped and reached for him as her eyes went glassy and dull.

Grant let out a roar of rage, turning away from the bag to launch a fist at the walls he and Kara had reinforced. He hissed at the sting to his already abraded skin.  _Pain._ He hit it again, taking a sharp breath as he heard a crunch.  _Pain. Yes. This. I can't have anything else, I can't_ understand _anything else, but pain means order. And order comes from pain._

* * *

_**Two weeks later...** _

"You convinced Mack not to quit," Andrew remarked to Phil.

"Yeah, well, he kind of owed me after cutting off my hand without asking," the director retorted.

"He respects you," Andrew continued. "But he still holds a deep distrust of all the alien artifacts you've encountered."

"That's why I put him in charge of them." Coulson allowed himself a smile. "So, May asked for some time off for the first time in the history of ever. Does that have anything to do with you being around these last few days?"

"Now, you know I can't discuss personal matters with patients," Andrew chastised.

Coulson raised a brow. "I'm your patient now? I wasn't your patient the other night when you and your ex-wife snuck into my office and drank up half my scotch."

Andrew smiled. "Ah, it's time May rediscovered the world outside of SHIELD, don't you think?" He handed Coulson a thick file.

"That your report?" the director asked.

"No, no, these are my recommendations for the new program," Andrew explained. "You bringing other people in on this yet?"

"Slowly," Coulson confirmed. "I've got Fitz working on these designs. We'll need to be mobile."

"Yeah." Andrew eyed him.

"Thank you," Phil said honestly. "I'm glad you think Skye's ready for this."

Andrew gave a small smile. "At this point, I think she's ready for anything."

* * *

Grant sat in the car he and Kara had liberated a month ago now, staring at the dashboard.  _A dolphin air freshener and a hula girl. She had to ask for those._ He clenched his fists on the steering wheel.  _And I saw it as a sign to start over._ He turned the car on and gunned it in reverse, speeding down the dirt road towards civilization for the first time in weeks. He yanked the air freshener and the hula girl and tossed them out the window once he was far enough away from the safehouse.

Ward glanced around the parking lot while he wiped down the car he'd arrived in.  _There'll definitely be a number of nondescript cars to choose from later._ He put the real license plate back on the rear and tossed the other in a dumpster on his way to the bar.  _If all goes well, I won't need four wheels for my next destination._ He looked around and stepped inside, putting a smirk on his face as he took a seat.  _Hopefully all I'll need is a gun._

_Or maybe not even that._

* * *

Cal turned and took a deep breath to face Skye. "This is so long...for now." He shrugged. "After all I've done, I'd be a fool to think I'd get a Hollywood ending. Came close." He smiled at her. "I found  _you_ and got to -" He sighed. "You know, you're better than I imagined, and I imagined you perfect." He chuckled as he considered her. "You're  _way_ more interesting than that."

Skye gave a teary laugh in return. "I wonder where I get that from."  _Please let me be more like him than like her..._

Cal heaved another sigh. "Ah. It's paradoxical, isn't it - my love for my family is what drove me mad." He lowered his voice, a serious look on his face. "I know I'm going away for good, but I was hoping...you might come visit...once in a while?"

Skye nodded as sobs threatened to escape. "I will. I promise." She sniffled.  _Whether you know it or not..._

Cal smiled. "That would be -"

"Let me guess," Skye interrupted with a chuckle. "'The best day ever'?" They both laughed. "You have a lot of those," she continued.

"No. Just one," he countered softly. "July 2, 1988." He smiled even as tears rolled down his cheeks.

Skye hugged her father hard, crying unashamedly.  _If finding my parents lead me to find him, to_ save  _him...It was worthwhile._ She exhaled shakily as she let him go.  _Bye, Dad._

* * *

Grant took another drink as he stared at Kara's picture.  _I can do this. I can find closure for us both. But not like that, not with those reminders. Closure, and the end._

The bartender nodded towards the picture. "Looks like you're having trouble letting go - hate to see that, my friend." He raised a brow. "Did she walk out on you?"

Ward looked up, his entire face a warning. "She drowned when her lungs filled up with blood," he answered flatly. He took another drink as his contacts arrived.  _Finally._ He took the piece of paper Kebo offered to him. "These are all the names you could drum up?"

"You're lucky we found  _this_ many," his informant scoffed. "Whitehall, Strucker, List - the leadership is  _gone_ , man. Usually, a head grows back, but not this time." Kebo shook his head. "The organization - pfft - disintegrated."

_Pain. Order. Closure._ "I want more names," Ward growled.

Kebo laughed. "And I want to marry into money." He leaned towards Ward. "Do you speak English? No leadership means nobody giving orders, and that sure as hell includes you," he finished, pointing a finger in Ward's face.

Ward finished his drink, slamming the glass and Kebo's face down on the bartop. He tossed the unconscious informant onto the floor and stood as one of Kebo's men stepped forward. "Do you understand who you work for now?" The three remaining men nodded. "Good. I'm done flying solo," he continued. "I miss having a  _team_ around me," he explained.  _My team. My terms._ He looked at each of them. "I want more names."

"Hail HYDRA to that," Kebo's second in command replied. "What's the plan, sir? Chaos?"

Grant turned to look at Kara's picture on the bar, surrounded by shattered glass. "Closure."

* * *

Skye checked the address and walked up slowly, watching a familiar face fuss outside the animal clinic.

"Oh! Hey, there, little funny face. You coming to see me today, hmm?" Cal reached out to pet the golden retriever. "You come inside. We'll get you a treat. Come on." He waved them in and turned. "Can I help you?"

Skye smiled. "Just passing by," she managed. "Nice place."

"Oh, thanks. Well, we're just getting up and running. It's gonna be a magical place once we get totally moved in."

_You deserve some magic in your life, the good kind._ She smiled.

"You know, we already have adoption days every Saturday. Tell your friends. Free spaying and neutering, too. Just ask for Dr. Winslow," her father said. "I'm sorry. And you are..."

"Daisy." Skye watched his face, searching for any sign of recognition.  _Your Daisy, once upon a time. Best day ever._

"That's a lovely name," he remarked. "Remember, a house is not a home without a pet!"

She smiled and waved as she walked back to the red Corvette and sighed. "Thank you for doing that for him. I know aspects of the TAHITI program don't sit well with you."  _But I also think this was worthwhile._

"This does," Coulson assured her. "He has a lot to give...and now a way to give it." He raised a brow. "And what about you? Are you ready to refocus your energies?"

"A team centered around people with powers?"  _People like me?_ She nodded towards the folio. "How many on the list?"

"Right now, just you." The director smiled. "We'll take it slow."

"I've thought a lot about it," Skye replied.

"And?" he queried.

"And my mother was right about one thing - people like me need to be kept a secret, not like the Avengers, out in the open," she explained. "If we do this, we need to be -"

"Anonymous. That's the idea. But it's not  _if_ we do this. We  _have_ to do this. We don't have a choice. It may feel like things have cooled down right now, but this -" Phil hoisted his sling. "This is my permanent reminder...that we'll always be paying the price, that we'll never get ahead of the consequences that I, that you, that SHIELD have set in motion. Like a ripple in the water. But this ripple won't fade. It'll grow and grow until it's a tidal wave."

Skye smirked.  _Like the rising tide, huh?_ She gave him a look. "Good thing we're going to be there, huh, AC?"

Coulson smiled. "Good thing."

* * *

Grand Ward stood in Whitehall's office, shaking his head. "That was almost too easy."

Kebo cracked his knuckles. "Sorry, boss. Next time I'll leave you more idiots to kill."

Ward snorted and sat down at the desk.  _I could get used to this._ He looked up at Kebo. "Try finding me names now."

Kebo shrugged. "We can narrow down half the people in this building at least. They're pretty dead."

Ward nodded. "Feel free to take pictures if you think other offshoots will need motivation to come back to the fold. It's not HYDRA anymore, but anyone looking for HYDRA can come see me."

Kebo nodded and backed out of the room.

Grant looked around at what SHIELD had left behind.  _They think they're so smart._ He stroked the arms of Whitehall's desk chair until he felt the catch he was looking for.  _I may not have known him directly, but Garrett was kind enough to share what he knew..._ He clicked the switch and chuckled as a tiny portion of the armrest lifted. Grant reached in and extracted the data chip.  _Sorry Kebo, can't trust anyone anymore._

Ward loaded the chip onto his phone and stood, crossing to the windows. He looked at the peaceful world below him.  _You all have no idea..._ He picked up the decanter of Scotch still resting on the windowsill and took a long drink.  _My arrogance, my anger, look what May did to us...Kara...baby, I'm so sorry. But I'm going to make this right. I'm going to get closure for both of us, and I'm going to bring the hammer down on HYDRA for what they stole from us._

_And then I'll do the same for SHIELD._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A.N. I hope you enjoyed my alternate take on the eps - sorry this one took so long! I got mildly sidetracked with a plot bunny for what could be in store for these guys - not developed enough to write, but enough to divert me for a bit. Let's just say I'm digging that leather jacket Grant's been sporting...
> 
> Anyway, thanks for reading!


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